Beautiful Harmony
by LunarButterfly121423
Summary: First waking up in the body of a character in Naruto, then meeting their inner personality, was never a good thing. Follow Kazumi Yukimura as she lives her life as Sakura, trying to redo past mistakes, and save peoples lives. Will she ever get her body back? Will she want to go back? Will Inner ever stop drooling over boys? Find out in this humorous story. Sakuxmulti, Saku-centric.
1. Chapter 1

**Authors Note:** Hello dear readers! This is my second Fanfiction story and was inspired by the many stories where they insert OC's into the Naruto world. Sakura Haruno is one of my favorite characters so I decided my insert OC would be placed into her body; and I would really like to see a different view from her side...sort of. She will be the heroine but other characters like Naruto will have big roles. I really am excited to see how I fair with this type of story and I know there are other stories like this but I just can't help myself from writing one. And for the readers who are reading my other story, do not worry for I will continue the story, I promise. I'm just really excited for this one. If you have questions or just like it than review, I will gladly read it.

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or it's characters only my OC's and plot.**

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**Starting all over**

**Sakura/Kazumi POV**

'This is not my bed.'

That, was the first thought that went through my head as I awoke from my unconscious state of slumber.

The bed in question was fine, it was soft, warm, heck it even smelled nice; but it wasn't my bed. I didn't even try to open my eyes, I laid in bed and felt around me. The reason I know it's not my bed is because my bed is a queen size bed, in my eighteen year old body I fit perfectly in it. There's room to move around if I want to but this bed is small I can feel it. The fact that I can touch the wall with my foot and my hand dangles down the other side while a stretch means its not my bed. And I don't place my bed against the wall.

I took in a deep breath, and fluttered my eyes open. My sight which was adjusting to the sunlight coming in from a window, was greeted by a very light pink ceiling. My room has never been pink whatever shade it may be, my sister's yes, me no. I took in another deep breath and slowly traveled my eyes around the room. I found the bed I was on was pushed towards the wall, the bottom part of the bed stopped right underneath the bottom of a window.

The part that was closer to me was shaded by the soft pink curtain that draped it, while the other was tied back letting in the sunlight. I turned my head and noticed a table on the floor in the middle of the room not too far away, as well as the table to my left beside the bed that held a lamp and clock. It was eight o'clock in the morning, I'm not sure whether it has an alarm programed into it, since I mostly get up before mine rings anyways.

Beside the bedside table there was an empty space, than a big drawer with five handles in the middle. After that was another space which made a dip in the wall where a window and a window sofa where located at. Then the rooms square shape turned and on the wall was a desk and then a space for another five layered drawer. There was a door next which I presumed led to the rest of the house. As the room turned again to the final wall, there were two rooms one which had no door, I presumed was a walk in closet, then the final door must lead to a bathroom or connects to another room. In the middle of the two doors was a full length mirror that could probably be about five feet in height and two or three in length. As much as the room was nice and spacious, again it wasn't mine.

And that wasn't all, I had these red flag like feelings that something else wasn't right. I closed my eyes, I tended to concentrate better this way, I felt my hair was down, which I don't sleep with it down. I have really long hair, so it tends to get tangled because it's wavy/curly. I usually braid it and sleep that way, it's just more manageable that way to me. So that was one reason, the next was the incredibly light way my body felt. I sat up, my sight set on the mirror I closed my eyes again, feeling really anxious. I swung my legs to the side of the bed, feeling that lightness to my body. I hopped out of bed and had to balance myself for awhile as I landed later than predicted.

As I made my way to the mirror that feeling of foreboding came strong along with the fluttering of those anxious feelings. When my hands touched the cool surface of the glass I immediately knew something was terribly wrong. I, am proud to say that I am very observant to the things around me, to people, and most definitely myself. To the feel of my body, to the pressure on my hands against the mirror, to the brush of my hair on my back, to the crinkle of my toes...something was terribly wrong. I took two deep breath and counted to three before I allowed my eyes to reopen.

When my eyes opened the only thing I could do was stare...stare...and stare. Before my very eyes was a very tiny child. Being the rational and observant person that I was, I took in everything. The child of about two or three years old with vibrant very observing viridian eyes stared back. She stood with a very small body leaning forwards, and had short bright pink hair that reached just passed her shoulders, with messy bangs. The child, although with a slightly larger forehead was undeniably cute. She wore her cute pink nightgown that reached her ankles, exposing her little toes that wiggled on the carpet. As I pulled my hands back away from the mirror, so did the child in the mirror.

'This can not be happening!' I thought in panic as I held my aching head.

'No wonder I felt weird...I'm stuck in a two year olds body!' And that wasn't the weirdest part, the fact remained that I knew who I was in. I looked at the girl in front of me who was also clutching her head.

'I, Kazumi Yukimura, eighteen years old am stuck in Sakura Haruno's two year old body.' I stared a little, before closing my eyes and opening them, three times, before realization hit me like a ton of bricks.

'I AM STUCK IN SAKURA'S BODY!' I started to completely panic.

'How did this happen? Why me? Why her? Who did this? Oh my god, what about my family!?'

My family was the most precious thing in the world to me, besides life of course, but this was ridiculous. What was I supposed to do? Change the plot? Leave it? Am I even in the anime/manga? What if it was a completely different dimension! I was experiencing a huge case of vertigo that made me sit down.

Gods! What if I couldn't go back? What was I going to do.

**"Hey! What the heck is your problem!?"** I jumped and looked around, there was no one around, but I clearly heard a voice.

'I wasn't talking out loud, was I?' Then that's when I remember who and where I was.

"...Inner Sakura...?" I whispered.

**"Duhhh! Who else would I be!?"** she yelled making me want to physically cover my ears but than realized it wouldn't matter since the voice was in my...I mean Sakura's head.

"Uhm...you know I'm not the real Sakura right?" For some reason I swear I could feel her roll her eyes at me.

**"Of course, I'm in your head! I would know if there was something wrong."** It was quiet for awhile until I decided to break the silence.

"So...I'm really in the Naruto world huh?"

**"What are you talking about?"** I felt my eyebrow raise at her question.

"Are you serious?...Don't tell me you don't find any of this weird?" I felt her tap her chin with her index finger.

**"Well yeah, I mean your obviously not Sakura, since you can speak fluently in** **a two year olds body."**

"..."

**"What!?"** I shook my head at her childishness.

"Well...there's that, but...I'm not from here."

**"Didn't we already establish that?"** she asked with a raised eyebrow and a hand on her hips.

"No, I didn't mean in Sakura's body, I meant in this world." I felt her drop her hand and looked confused.

**"I don't understand?"** She asked.

"This." I gestured to my body and the things around me.

"Is known to me only as a show/book, this isn't real in my world...which brings me to the conclusion that it's another dimension because I already know what's going to happen...so the writer can't be writing about me coming here." It was quiet while we processed this information.

**"...So what are you going to do?"** I couldn't answer her right away.

"...I don't know..." I looked down to the tiny hands that I now possessed.

**"Well whatever it is...I can help you."** I looked up towards the reflection of the tiny Sakura.

"Really!?" I felt her nod her head vigorously.

**"Yeah, I mean what else am I supposed to do?"** that's right, it's not like she could go anywhere...besides be quiet if she wanted too, I suppose.

"I know, I was going to ask you I just didn't want to be rude..." I felt her eyes widen.

**"Oh, wow your so considerate, well don't worry I'll help out!...So...you said you know what will happen...how am I in the future?"** Oh...is that all she wanted to know.

"Well...Sakura, or you since you are technically her, grow up to be a very impressive kunoichi." I said while smiling.

**"Oh...cool!"** She said while I faintly heard her say **"Is that all?"** What else did she want to know? The Sakura in Naruto was a pretty amazing character.

"Why is it that you sound disappointed?"

**"Well...what about, other stuff..."** Other stuff? like what?

"What exactly do you want to know?" I asked her. She sighed exasperatingly.

**"I'm talking about love! Am I married? Who do I get with?"** Love? Before I could even answer her questions she gasped.

**"Is it Sasuke!?"** I raised an eyebrow, that's right, at this time Sakura was infatuated with him...but wait?

"Wait a minute, how do you even know Sasuke? Aren't you to young to know him?"

**"Well Sakura's parents would take us out to the village from time to time...and in one of those times...we saw him!"** I winced at the last part, she had squealed pretty loud.

"Well...wait! Can't you just see through my memories?"

**"Yeah...I guess, but I believe in privacy!"** she said, I actually found that quite admirable.

"I give you permission to see...since it is your life anyway." She nodded and I had the feeling she was seeing what I knew. It was quiet for at least ten minutes until she spoke up.

**"Wow! I can't believe I get that strong!...But does that war really happen?"** I nodded my head solemnly.

**"Okay! I have decided!"** I was taken aback by her exclamation.

"What have you decided?"

**"To help you change things!"** I was shocked.

"Whoa, who said I was changing the plot?" I asked

**"What? I thought you were going to help make things better?"** she asked me with her face scrunching up in confusion.

"I still don't know what to do, I mean I want to help but what if I'm not supposed to?"

**"I'm sure you were brought here for a reason!"**

"But I'm not supposed to change things, Naruto is, he's the main character!"

**"But you, yourself said you didn't think you were in the show! So why would it matter!?"** I quieted down, she was right if it wasn't the anime/manga than I shouldn't worry that I'll mess some thing up.

"But what about the other people's lives? I'm sure if I change the plot it will most likely change their lives. something's need to happen and some don't."

**"Listen, if your afraid to mess something up, then don't be!** **The future I saw isn't something most people will look forward to...you can really help** **people if you were to change things."** I was surprised. I knew that if Sakura had an inner she must help out sometimes like with the Chuunin exams when she fought Ino; but inner Sakura was very helpful.

"Thank you..." She seemed to not be expecting that since she closed her mouth from an instant rebuttal.

**"What?"**

"I said thank you, for helping me and for giving me a reason to fight. Right now...I was alone, with no one but my knowledge and than you came along and comforted me in my moment of weakness whether intentional or not...so I thank you for everything." I felt like she was giving me a genuine smile.

**"Your welcome!"** I smiled slightly, looking intensely in the mirror in front of me.

"I think...I'll do it. I will change the plot so people won't end up in a war...and I will be looking for a way back home so my family won't worry. Hey inner?"

**"Hmm?"**

"When you looked through my memories did you see my life?"

**"Eh? No, I told you I believe in privacy so I only looked through the things pertaining to this world, as you put it."**

"Oh, Do you think you can do me a favor?"

**"No! You and I both don't know whether you can even change back so from now on you are Sakura and I am your inner, you don't need to ask for favors, just say it!" **My eyes widened

"...Alright, so can you look and tell me what I was doing before I was brought here."

**"Sure and I'll just show you."**

"Uhm, what do I do?"

**"Just close your eyes."** I did what I was told.

"How can you do this?"

**"Well for starters, you have a well developed mind so that allows me to shift through memories easier. Showing you is possible because we are one."**

"That makes sense but now it's the same body and completely different minds, since you are apart of the original Sakura." She nodded

"By the way, it's been bugging me since the beginning of our conversations. How come I can feel it when you move or have emotions?"

**"It's like you said same body different minds. I have my own sort of reign in here while you have it out there, that's why I'm Inner and your Outer. Although I am merely a conscience for you, you have given me full clearance of your mind. With that permission I am able to create my own body or whatever I want by using your mind."**

"Hmm, I see. So what else can you do?" She shrugged

**"I don't know, unlike you who has seen the anime/manga, I have yet to experience much."**

"That's right, I was brought into Sakura's body at her age of two, and since you are her body's conscience you wouldn't have experienced much."

**"Yup."**

"But wait!"

**"Now what!?"**

"If your her body's conscience than why are you older than two?"

**"That's where your memories come in, you have only sort of known me when I would appear in the anime/manga at Sakura's age of twelve**. **Your mind had only known me as her so it changed me into her instead of being two and growing along side you like how a two year old Sakura should have. And you didn't change me into an older version because your mind didn't know how to portray me like it."**

"hmm."

**"Like I said before, you have a very well developed mind. You used your knowledge to change** **me to the version that you were most comfortable with." **

"Will you still grow?"

**"Yeah when your body turns twelve, which is the age I am in, we will both start growing together. The reason for that being, since your mind is technically that of an eighteen year old but your body is that of a two year old child, you have mentally stopped me from growing past the age you changed me to; because right now your mind is stronger than your body...sort of, do you understand?"** She asked, confusing herself in the process of explaining to me.

"Yeah, I guess."

**"Okay! I found it!"** There was suddenly a flash and just like a movie I was seeing my last moments in the real world.

I was in my room getting ready for bed, just the regular routine. I was beginning to lose hope I would find anything. I laid down in my bed pulling the purple comforter up. I watched, with my breath held, trying to look everywhere, take in all the details that I might have missed. Soon it went black as I had closed my eyes to sleep. I waited in the dark, listened, smelled, but nothing worked! I waited for what could have been seconds, minutes, even hours, and just when I was about to loose hope and tell Inner it was enough, something happened. My senses returning quicker because of how light of a sleeper I am, picked up the sudden noise made by my curtains. I could feel the cold, prickling fresh air coming in from the window. My eyes travelled to the window and stared at the open window it came to my attention that I had it closed before. I looked around the room to make sure it wasn't opened by someone else; but before I could even see anything, something black was placed over my eyes, which gripped onto me tightly. And just like that the memory faded and I opened my eyes to the light pink room from before.

I hadn't realized my rapid breathing until I was snapped out of my trance like moment by Inner.

**"Hey! Are you okay?!"** Although she had snapped me out of my trance like state, her voice was soon pushed away by my rapid thoughts.

'what was that? Who was in my room? Why can't I remember that even happening let alone what happened next!' I thought in my head.

**"HEY! Calm down!"** I shook my head.

'Was I talking out loud?'

**"You don't have to be for me to communicate with you!"**

'So it seems you can hear all my thoughts.'

**"Not all of them! This is the last time I'm going to say it. I believe in privacy! Need I spell it out for you!?"** I frowned

"Quit shouting! And no you don't need to spell it out, but if you believe in privacy so much than why did you hear me just then?"

**"Because, you were drowning yourself in so many emotions! If the thought has so much feeling to it, I will most likely** **hear it."** I calmed down and took a deep breath.

"Okay, good to know." she frowned

**"Yeah! And it would have been good to know that you ask a lot of questions when your nervous! Maybe than I could have shielded myself from the onslaught of questions!" **

"It was not that bad."

**"Yeah it was!"**

"No it wasn't!" I am pretty sure we were both glaring at each other.

**"You are so stubborn!"**

"humph."

'Your so annoying.' I thought in my head.

**"HEY! I heard that!"** I narrowed my eyes.

"I thought you believed in privacy?"

**"Ugh yeah! Privacy when it's important!"** she yelled

"You said privacy, which usually implies to all except for the emotionally packed ones, that you can't shut out."

**"No! Do you** **know how hard that would be?! I thought it was ****_implied_**** that all thoughts would be heard except for the important, privacy needed ones."** I sighed out. I rubbed my head to decrease it's ache.

"Fine." I said agreeing so she wouldn't scream anymore inside my head. Wait, Screaming?

"Hey, you know what? I just remembered something."

**"What?"** she asked still sounding a little grouchy.

"I am yelling...fluently, in this two year olds body...where, are her parents?"

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**First Chapter complete! I hope you like it, and I will continue to work on both this story and The Inevitable. I will try to make this story different than all the other similar stories out there, and hope you will continue to read. As always review if you liked it!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Authors Note:** Background music, it's one of the best things to use for a different feel to a story. It helps inspire and gives you a motivational push to create a better mental image of what you are reading, so I encourage readers to listen while reading. Okay important information I am about to give you. I don't really know much about Sakura's parents and I didn't feel like researching everything I could find, so I just created OC's that would help my plot. I hope you enjoy your reading!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

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**Getting Used To This World**

**Sakura/Kazumi POV**

**"Parents?, Oh! Sakura's parents aren't home, it's a Friday they have work."** Work? Right that makes sense.

"Inner, if I'm really going to change the plot I'm going to need your help." I told her while I got off the floor and walked towards the door, I assumed would lead me to the rest of the house. Walking in a two year olds body with my 'real world' eighteen year old mind was weird. The way everything looked and felt were slightly different from my world. I don't know what was weirder being in a child's body, or in a world that to me was categorized as anime.

I reached for the door knob, having to reach with my hand stretched out and on my tippy toes. The feel of the door knob was really similar to the real world it was just really weird...maybe it's just me?

**"What do you need help in?"** She asked me right when I had accomplished the task of opening the door.

"You'll have to help me with the things I don't know...for example, you can tell me everything you know about Sakura's parents and her life up till this point."

**"Oh...well of course, but shouldn't you already know her parents?"**

"No in the anime/manga they never really got to all the little details such as how each character lives there life or other such things. All we really saw where the most improtant moments, I really will have to start form the very beginning..."

**"Don't worry I'll be here to help with whatever I can!"** She said enthusiastically, I smiled at her comment and proceeded to walk out the door. The door lead out to a hallway which was most likely in the second story because there were stairs going down a few feet away from me to the left. I looked to my right and there were two more doors, one across the hall from mine to the very end of that hallway. The other one, was a door down from mine also towards the end of the hallway. The house was pretty big to be able to space all these big rooms.

I walked towards the rooms, and entered the one on the same wall as mine. If it was a room than it might connect to the door inside the room I was previously in.

**"What are you doing?"** asked Inner as I made my way down the hall.

"Unlike Sakura, I didn't have two years to know the lay-out of my own house, and it's better to check now when her parents aren't home...opps I did it again, refering to Sakura's parents as her's...Inner your going to have to help me with that too."

**"Sure, no problem!"** As I reached the end of the hallway, I stretched out again to turn the door knob. It opened and I pushed it so it would allow me entrance inside. I stepped in and found myself inside a dark blue room...but it was devoid of anything personal, so I figured it was a guest room.

"Is this a guest room?" I asked Inner.

**"Yeah, since your their only daughter...they keep it opened and clean just in case."** I nodded my head as I looked around. It was clean just like she said and nothing much was inside only a bed in the middle of the room pushed up against the wall, two big drawers side to side on the wall to the right. Two windows on each side of the bed with a light blue curtain draping them, as well as a nightstand on both sides of the bed. On the wall to the left of me there was a wardrobe and on the wall connecting with the door was a desk with a mini book shelf beside it. It seems the door in my room must connect to a bathroom because this room has no other doors.

I stepped out while closing the door behind me and turned around to face the door behind me.

"Is this my parents room?" Weird question to be asking, I know, but a very important one too.

**"Yeah, and I'm proud your finally getting it!"** She said with tears in her eyes and hands clasped together. I rolled my eyes at her antics.

"Yeah, yeah." I opened the door getting a little more used to this body. Inside was a big room only slightly bigger than my room. It was a creamy white color and contained mostly things with the color burgundy. Their bed was in the middle, up against the wall to my right, with bedside tables on each side with lamps. Two big drawers where placed in the wall infront of me beside a big wardrobe along with a window. The wall to the left of me had a door and a shelf that held not books but pictures. The wall where the door I opened was at only had a desk pushed towards it. I walked inside and made my way towards the shelf containing the pictures.

"Are these pictures from all of us?"I asked while I noticed they all had either me or two adults that stayed constant. The pictures where taken in all sorts of places, and they looked really happy. I suddenly felt a pang of saddness wash over me.

**"Yeah, there pictures of all three of you...woah whats wrong?"** I blinked a couple of times to stop the tears from falling, I will not lose hope.

"Nothing...They all looked happy and it reminded me of back in my world. I love to take pictures it was my precious hobby with my family, I would take pictures of everything since I was really young to now. I suppose thats where my keen eye for detail increased." I continued to stare at the pictures, although some were done quite amateurishly they were wonderful because of the aura they gave off. The innocent young child held in the arms of either loving parent; and the smiles they gave off. The worryless, carefree smile of the brownish red haired man as he protectivly embraced his family. And the calm, serene smile of the very light blonde haired beautiful woman. I suppose it makes sense now, how Sakura got her pink hair, but it's still quite a unique hair color to have.

I stopped looking at the pictures and made my way towards the door. I opened it and looked inside. The bathroom was very adult like...how should I put it, They have everything a regular bathroom would have, everythings just organized. I'm almost positive if the door inside my room leads to a bathroom, than it's probably pink and childlike.

"So what time do they get back?" I asked while I made my way back to the hallway.

**"Well...your mom works Monday thru Friday in a bakery from eight to three, with breaks and sometimes like today she goes in early. Your dad is a ninja so he pretty much has different days he works."** I nodded my head.

"Does mother or father check on me? Or does someone else?" Inner nodded

**"Both, since your young, she checks on you and your next door neighbor comes to check on you when she can't."**

"Why do you refer to me as if I was the only one, you said it yourself we are one now." She smiled and nodded while scratching the back of her head in embarrassment.

**"Yeah...sorry, anyways about other stuff you need to know! The bakery she own's is really close by, so that way she can check on you faster."** I nodded and walked towards the stairs.

"Augh! there's just so much I still need to know!" I was starting to get frustrated.

**"Hey, calm down, we can do this. I'm here to help you with anything you need to know."**

"Thanks, you really are a big help." I said as I looked down the stairs. They went down with a railing on the right and the wall on the left. I took a step, momentarily forgetting my size and almost falling to a very painful floor if not for the railing that I was gripping with dear life. I ended up hitting my knee instead, but hey, I perfer that over my head or neck.

"That could have ended really badly." I said after the shock subsided.

**"Yeah, it would have hurt like hell."** I shook my head at Inner's look of horror. I stood back up and tried again, slowly this time. Going down the stairs was a big accomplishment for us.

"Good, now to survive the whole other more dangerous situations."

**"Your really negative."**

"No, I'm realistic." Inner shook her head.

"Anything else you can tell me for now, we can talk about real important stuff later."

**"Umm, Oh yeah! I'll tell you about Sakura's personalitly up till now so you won't act differently and raise suspicion."** I nodded agreeing with her.

"That's a good idea." I told her as I looked around. The stairs lead to the lower level which was all just mixed together. The living room was straight ahead of me, which had a big TV, A three seat sofa, and two one person chairs. They all looked soft and comfotable in their creamy white color. A table was in the middle and a long window was to the left of the living room wall it also had a window sofa like in my room. There were other small things like pictures, plants, the usual.

I stepped up and noticed a small hallway to my left that lead outside...I think? The floor went down in a step like fashion to place your shoes on the lower level and then step up and get inside the house. Right beside the stairs was a space for a table where one sits with there knees tucked in, I suppose to drink tea, play shogi or whatever else they wanted. Further away was a doorless room that lead to a kitchen, and had no wall on one side because of its breakfast bar. As I went inside I saw the island in the middle surrounded by the apliances and to the left was another small room which held a table and chairs. There was a window allowing the warm glow of the sun to shine over the room in a soft light.

"This is a very modern like house."

**"It's mostly Clan heads that have the traditional homes."** I nodded.

"Yeah, I can see the logic. It doesn't matter though, I like anything and I certainly won't complain. So tell me about Sakura." She nodded, while I noticed a small hallway beside the china cabinet similar to the entrance door hallway.

**"Sakura as you know is only two, so she can't talk fluently like you are doing know, she can talk good just not this good. She's smart for a child and likes to read and is nice, maybe a little shy but friendly. She can be stuborn but not as bad as you."** I frowned.

**"She hasn't really gotten too angry, umm...I don't know what else to say."**

"That's good information your giving me, don't quit now. Tell me about her likes. Does she like flowers? Candy? Toys? What foods does she like?" I tried to supply some examples.

**"Yeah! She likes flowers, any type of candies. Toys, only stuffed ones, foods? She likes anything. Umm, she likes to go outside, read, learn things, play."** I nodded.

"That's good, she's quite close to how I used to be and most importantly how my sister was, since I can remember how she used to act better."

**"Are you going to act exactly like her?"**

"No, some things have to change, because it's not just you it's me a different person now; but some things will stay the same, since it _is_ Sakura's body." I arrived to the door.

"Where does this lead?" I asked Inner, trying to reach the door knob.

**"Outside."** She answered as I opened the door and pushed it away. I stepped out and it felt weird. The air and sun felt nice and warm as it touched my body.

"Although they are technically the same thing as in my world, just looking around, one can say it's different. I can't explain the feeling, not that it's bad just...similarly different." I'll just have to experiance new things.

**"You make no sense."**

"I make sense to myself." I told her as I looked around. The back yard was spacious, but not overly so. To the farthest of the yard it was occupied with trees, small trees that adults could probably easyly climb and sit on. There was space inbetween them if kids wanted to play hide and seek or tag. On the sides where a wooden fence bordered, there were flowers of many types. On my left there was a round table for a nice afternoon to drink tea or read or a picnic. There wasn't anything else that was space consuming other than a small Sakura tree that was probably a head taller than an adult to my left. Underneith it there was a small pond and I walked up to it. I breathed in the scents and took in the view, which were different for my place where there was less places like this and more of city types. I looked in the pond and was greeted by small baby koi, I smiled.

"This place is nice and relaxing."

**"Yeah, our parents like the peace and tranquility."** I nodded and looked around and noticed that the space left with unoccupied space could be used for training. I wanted to sit and feel the grass on my tiny fingers and let the sun come and warm my small body, but I knew I might get caught, so I went back inside. Closing the door behind me I walked up to the window sofa in the living room and sat there.

"Might as well start to ask you questions." Inner nodded

"What are the names of our parents? How are they like?"

**"Our dad is kioshi Haruno and our mom is Madoka Haruno. Both of them are really nice, but protective. Our dad may not be high in the Shinobi world but he is pretty strong. Mom is a civilian but doesn't look like she'll be any trouble convincing her to let us be a ninja. Let me see...dad was born here but mom was born in the Land of Water."**

"Water? Hmm, interesting. Hey going off topic for a bit. Do you think that now that I'm Sakura I will have her perfect chakra control and almost perfect memory?"

**"Well, I don't see why not, from what I saw from your memories Sakura, or I master medical ninjutsu with my chakra contol, so if it came from within practice and natural skill, I don't see why you wouldn't have it either. As for the perfect memory that will be easy, you have a good memory and a strong mind, plus you have me now, so perfect memory is no problem. All you have to do is read it and I will store it away."**

**"But why are you asking?"** I moved the curtain away so I could see the houses outside.

"I'm going to continue being a medical ninja, for the original Sakura and for myself. I think being able to heal is a wonderful gift which can help alot of people."

**"You are so weird."** weird? Me? I dropped the curtain, surprised.

"What do you mean?" she sighed.

**"Your views are so different from other people."** I frowned.

"I still don't understand."

**"You are an eighteen year old girl from another dimension and you worry about others instead of yourself!"**

"That's not true! I said I wanted to get home, to my real body."

**"You said so your family won't worry! ****_And_**** you decided to help with this world when you don't even know anyone!"**

"I know what I said, but my family is everything to me and I hate to see people dieing for a wrong cause!"

**"Your just strange. How many people would change the plot for the better? Think about what a power hungry person would do with that knowledge!"** I thought about it, and I didn't like the outcome I had formed.

"So I'm weird for trying to help people?"

**"..."**

"What?"

**"Nothing! Anyways, what else do you want to know?"** What do I want to know? Before I could think about anything else my stomach growled .

"That's right, we haven't ate." I pushed of the soft pillowy sofa and walked into the kitchen. It felt weird thinking that this was my house and my new life.

"So do I just make stuff or is there something already made?"

**"Hmm, it should already be made."** I walked up to the fridge and sure enough food was in the there already prepared. I began to eat my breakfast, which was very good and I knew a baker for a new mom would be amazing.

"I love sweets. Hopefully I can eat some of her pastries."

**"Oh definetly! She always makes us some sort of snack."** I was happy with that piece of information. I looked at the clock on the wall. It was eleven forty, we spent around three hours almost four just talking and looking around the place. I sighed, if time was going this fast just talking, I better be productive with my time.

I got of the breakfast bar, I ate there cause it was closer and I walked over to the sink. I washed and rinsed them, towel drying them and placing them in there corresponding spots, that I had found after failing in my search untill Inner told me.

**"So what are you going to do now?"** asked Inner as I made my way back to my room.

"First take a shower, then change obviously. After that I"m going to take a moment to learn all I can about Sakura and familiarize myself with her cloths, manners, and speech patterns. This is only for the mean time untill I know the adults don't find anything suspicous." Inner nodded as I arrived at my room.

I walked over to the drawers and began to open all of them looking for something to change into. Once I found what I was looking for I went over to the room I assumed would be the walk-in closet. I turned on the light switch and looked around.

"They really like to make her look cute don't they?"

**"Yup they baby us, but not overly spoil us."** I nodded as a went through the cloths, the whole closet itself didn't have much cloths since everyone knows it would be a waist to buy too much. Kids grow quickly so having alot of kid cloths would just waist money.

"I don't blame them though, Sakura is a very cute kid and I know I was the same when my sister was born. Plus Sakura is their first and only child." I found a cute little sundress that had a creamy yellow color and had pretty pink blossoming flowers, along with a pink sash that went on the waist. Once I gathered all my things I headed to the bathroom. I opened the door and just as I suspected, a white bathroom with pink and purple accesories everywhere.

**"You don't hate pink, do you?"** I smiled at Inner's question.

"Nah, I don't really hate any color, I just like purple a little bit more is all." I walked over to what looked like a hamper with a table style top, where you just lift it up and throw your cloths in. Placing my cloths on top, I turned around and sighed.

"It's going to take a lot of time to get used to all of this." I felt like I've said that alot today.

**"Yeah, but we'll manage."** I smile, yeah somehow.

**~After Shower~**

"I needed the cold shower." I sighed blissfully as I re-entered my room.

**"I have no idea why anyone would enjoy that cold shower!"** yelled a freezing Inner.

"Will you quit whinning, I needed to stop thinking."

**"Who in the world takes a cold shower to stop thinking!"**

"I do, it helps. When I can and need it, I do it. Besides, leave me alone I have a whole story to change." She rolled her eyes.

**"It's not a story."** She said as if she was talking to a child, which I suppose is technically true.

"Right, thats the thing I need your help with, everytime I do or say something wrong, that you know is absolutly wrong shout or something." I wonder if that was a good idea...Oh well. I went over to my mirror and looked at myself. The child that once looked panicked now looked tranquil. She looked refreshed and ready to go through the day.

"I would have done something to her hair but it would raise suspicion, I have to wait till I get older."

**"Ooooh! You can do hairstyles?!"** Asked Inner in an excited manner.

"Yeah, I told you before right? I have a sister that I adore, so making her look cute was no problem...lets see, do you want to know what I used to be like." Inner nodded vigourusly.

"I'm good with hairstyle, drawing, singing, dancing, and sports because my sister either liked it or wanted me to do it. Before you say anything, I did it because I liked it aswell not just for her." I could almost hear her saying something along the lines of why I would do things for others and not myself.

"What else did I do? Oh right, I helped my mom cook but I was never amazing just good at it, I prefered baking cause of the sweets. You already know a loved photography and still do, and I like to read, write, play instruments. You could say I just liked to experiance anything and everything. My family and I would go traveling and it was always fun to learn something I didn't know."

**"Wow! Sounds like loads of fun! You were really good at anything you did!"** I shook my head.

"No." She tilted her head in confusion.

**"What do you mean?"**

"I was not good at everything I did, no one can be perfect. I, along with everyone else have faults, make mistakes, cause accidencts, but I just learn from them. There are countless other people who are better. I'm not brinning myself down or anything, and besides this situation is going to give me a chance to make better decisions, and of course I have to work my butt off if I ever want to change the plot. If I'm good at something it's because I work hard to make myself good at it." Inner nodded.

**"Me too! I will work hard along side you!"** I smiled

"Thank You." She shook her head and I stayed quiet feeling the sad aura she was giving off.

**"I should be thanking you...I know I'm not the best, as you have seen, I was annoying to people and I let my love for Saskue-kun get the better of me. Until he left did I realize what I could become without him, I feel ashamed"**

"You shouldn't feel ashamed of your feelings." She looked at me with teary eyes.

"No one ever said feelings were stupid or something you should be ashamed of. Embrace your feelings and allow your self to feel them."

**"You didn't think I was annoying?"**

"I never thought your feelings were annoying, you just didn't know how to portray them correctly. Instead of stalking or suffocating him with so much admiration, pull back a little and calmly do things." She nodded slowly.

**"Yeah...thanks. You are really wise."**

"Eh? I guess...if you say so. Anyways I don't mind you liking him just don't expect too much out of me."

**"Eh?"**

"I'm sure you like him and all, but unfortunatly he can only see me and not you...so please don't expect me to love him or something. There's nothing wrong with him, it's just weird for me right now. I use to see you and him as characters who I would never meet so it didn't matter how I thought; but now you and him are people, not that you weren't, your just becoming my new reality. I have to think about that and get to know people for who they are, not from what I vaguely know...for example, you. They portrayed you as an infatuated sasuke fangirl with a quick temper, you were the emotions Outer Sakura bottled up. But now that I know you for...five hours." She chuckled and I smiled.

"I can proudly state they did not do justice. You are encouraging and more helpful than they showed. In the anime/manga you helped Outer face Ino; but thats all I saw of help from you. Know I now I can't 100% trust what I have read or saw." There was a peaceful silence following my little unprepared speech.

**"Thank you Kazumi."** I smiled at her usage of my real name.

"No, Thank you Sakura. That will most likely be the last time I hear my real name in a long time...so thank you." We shared a nice bonding moment and I feel accomplished. Maybe getting used to things wasn't so bad.

* * *

**This chapter was pretty long, anyways hope you liked it! I know somethings are different like her parents and maybe a little OOC but it will get better. And the reason it's so hard and weird for Kazumi to believe she's there, is because she's from our world. Wouldn't you feel weird if you were to be thrown into anime? Review if you like it!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Authors Note:** Wow another chapter down, I really like where this going I just hope you guys do too. You will see the first nervous interactions between Sakura and her parents in this chapter. Hopefully you guys like the story and continue to read it.

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

**Crazy First Day**

**Sakura POV**

I walked away from the mirror and headed towards the desk. As I arrived I pulled the chair back and opened the drawers. There were paper, scrolls, and other utensils inside. I pulled out paper and a pencil, placing them on the table.

**"What are you doing?"** Inner asked curiously.

"I'm making a list of what to do, but don't worry I'll dispose of it when I'm done."

**"Then why make one in the first place?"**

"Because it helps me be organized." Inner nodded.

"Okay first things first, learn all I can about this world by going to the Library, reading the books in the house, or by asking our parents questions."

**"Yeah, they already know we like to read and learn so it won't be suspicous."**

"Yeah, only we're going to have to start with small things." Inner nodded in agreement.

"Okay next?" I had a flash of blonde and blue. I looked down to the paper and nodded.

**"Help Naruto?"** Inner read outloud.

"Yeah, as you have seen through my memories from the anime/manga, he lived a pretty lonely life. So Inner, you and I will change that so he can have a nice life...well as best as we can give him."

**"Of course! I feel really bad from seeing how I treated him in your memories; but it won't happen this time! I promise!"** I smiled at Inners resolve then frowned at the paper.

"...Okay maybe making a list will only be a hinderance, it's not like we'll even follow the thing step by step." I grunted while ripping it, into tiny unreadable pieces and throwing them on the trash can that was beside the desk.

**"That was a waist...so what will we do?"** I sighed.

"For now focus on studing, and trainning, we can just do everything in between." Inner nodded, I went over to the clock beside my bed and noticed that it was two forty eight.

"Mother is almost home."

**"Yeah, you should practice your speech pattern and behavior for the time being; because you act to mature for a two year old." **I nodded at her logic.

"Alright, first I suppose I shouldn't call them mother and father directly at them. Did Sakura call them mom and dad, or mommy and daddy?"

**"She called them mommy and daddy but once you get a little older you can change it, I suppose."** I nodded.

"And when I talk to them, I guess I'll just use small sentences that aren't too complicated such as..." I thought for a minute.

"Mommy, can we go to the park? And then I'll flash her a cute smile and we're good." Inner narrowed her eyes.

**"Your a little too good at acting like a two year old."**

"Well, my sister was two and I remember how she used to talk...I'm pretty much using my sister as my mental model in portraying little Sakura."

**"Yeah, that makes sense."** Before we could practice anymore, we heard a door opening down stairs. I looked at the clock.

"Do you think it's mother...I mean mommy?" Inner shook her head.

**"I think it's the neihbor."** I walked over to the door and opened it while walking down the hallway and towards the stairs.

"Sakura! It's me, Mari!" I raised my eyebrow.

**"That's our neighbor." **supplied Inner, I walked down the stairs and made noise as I took steps down each one, carefully. Mari, my neighbor, looked up, she smiled widely when she saw me. Her smile was warm and reminded me of an aunt I have.

"My goodness, look at how cute you look! Your growing up so fast!" I smiled at her. She walked up to me as I was standing on the last step.

"You ate breakfast right?" I nodded.

"Good, your mom should be here pretty soon." I nodded, having nothing to say.

"My, your so quiet. Come on, lets go into the living room." I came up with a plan, as I followed her to the living room. I sat on the three seated sofa and she sat in front of me in the one seater chair.

'Hey Inner, lets practice with her." I felt her nod.

"Mari-san, do you want a drink?" I tried to keep my sentence short and use small words. It must have worked seeing the happy expression she was portraying.

"Your so polite for your age, your mother must be so proud; but tell me, is she giving you lessons on etiquette?" Oh crap!

'Inner!?'

**"Uhm, just say something! Anything?"**

'Anything?...thanks for the help...' I replied sarcastically.

"No, I just look at what mommy says and does." I even tilted my head and blinked my eyes twice.

"Oh! Your so smart!" She squealed and held her hands together.

"Of course she's smart!" I jumped at the new voice, who I didn't hear come in. I turned around and saw the same woman in the portraits from before she was standing behind me.

**"Quick, run give her a hug."** Inner instructed. I snapped out of it.

"Mommy!" I yelled not to loud. As I ran to her she had a smile and returned the embrace wholeheartedly, she picked me up and held me in her arms. It felt weird calling a strager mommy plus getting picked up by one, but what else am I to do?

"Hi honey, were you okay by yourself today?" I nodded, she then looked up to Mari.

"Thank you for checking up on her Marianne." My mother said, so the neihbors name is Marianne. My mother placed me on the floor.

"Go into the living room I"ll be right there."I nodded and smiled, then I left.

"No problem! She's so sweet and I'm always happy to watch over her! By the way, are you aware that she's picking up on your mannerisms?" I turned my head slightly over the couch, this small body was making it hard to see, so I just leaned on the armrest and peeked.

"Oh? No, I wasn't aware." She said while looking over to me, our eyes met and before she could suspect anything I smiled. She smiled back and looked over to Marianne.

"Well, thank you again."She lead her to the door while they continued talking, it became impossible for me to see because of the hallway they entered.

'What do I do know, Inner!? I can't make it suspicious.'

**"Go into the kitchen and get a glass of juice."** I nodded that seemed ordinary, I'll have to get comfortable with this house as if it was mine, if this was going to work. I walked in and headed for the fridge, having some trouble at first from my little strength. As it opened, I searched for juice, I found orange juice and took it out. Going over to the island in the middle, I placed the juice on top using my tippy toes.

'Where are the cups?'

**"In the top right cabnet beside the fridge...but we can't reach them."** She's right , it's too high up.

"Mommy!" I called out to Madoka feeling that was the most normal thing a child would do. I heard footsteps and turned around.

"What is it, Sakura?" She asked as she came closer to me.

"Uhm..." I said in a soft voice. She smiled as she noticed the orange juice on the top of the island, and my general direction. She was very observant...or maybe that was just me?

"Juice? Sure thing Sakura." She came up to me and reached with ease towards the glass cabnet, pulling a glass cup out and pouring juice into the cup, she than proceeded to give it to me.

"Thanks mommy!" She smiled, and I drank the juice to fill in the silence.

**"Say something!"** I drank a huge gulp of juice and sighed exaggeratedly.

"Mommy did you see how nice I look today? I took a shower all by my self!" I said in a proud, child-like tone.

"Yes I did, you look very nice and cute." I smiled as she went to wash her hands.

"What are you doing?" I asked while tilting my head in a curious manner.

"I'm going to make lunch."

**"Quick ask to help!" **

"Mommy can I help?" She smiled down to me.

"Sure, let's make daddy a nice lunch for when he gets back." I nodded as I headed for the sink.

'How am I doing?'

**"Your doing great!"** I smiled, good. Helping make lunch reminded me of when I helped my own mother. Madoka was a nice mother, it won't take long to feel comfortable around her. Kioshi was the one I was worried about, he was a ninja so he must be observant.

**"Maybe we're worrying too much, I mean we are only two."** said Inner.

'Maybe, but parents have this weird sense where they just know when something is wrong.'

**"Yeah, I guess."**

As time went by, we finally finished making lunch and I was almost positive that she would not suspect me anymore...from what Inner was sprouting about doing a great job.

"Okay we're pretty much done Sakura, why don't you help set the table?" I nodded as she held out some plates so I could set them on the table. I went inside the dinning room and placed the plates in front of each chair. I went back and got the cups, then the silver ware and napkins. When I finished, I turned around to go back into the kitchen to see if I had other things to do when I saw Madoka standing at the door way. She looked at the table and then at me, I had a terrible feeling, I looked back towards the table. What did I do? I'm sure I acted fine, and didn't do something out of the normal right? I even placed some things messily while fighting my slight OCD to fix things. I even made it look like a child did it.

"It's true you pay attention to what mommy does, isn't it?" My eyes wanted to widened but I fought it back and tilted my head.

"I like to watch mommy and daddy!" I said and she smiled.

"My little girl is growing up so fast! You will grow up to be a strong, smart woman!" She said while coming and picking me up. I hugged her but for a different reason. I didn't want her to see my relieved face for not getting caught.

"I want to be just like you!" She laughed and twirled with me in her arms, we laughed as we spun, that is until a pair of arms engulfed us and stopped our happy moment. Well Madoka continued to laugh while I almost had my heart stop. If there was one thing that bothered me immensly was being caught off gaurd, meaning surprised. Don't get me wrong, I like surprissed just as much as the next guy, but any little thing that pops-up out of no where, just makes me jump.

"And why are my two precious people so cheerful?" I already knew it was Kioshi by the brownish red hair that I had spotted earlier.

"My dear! Listen to this, Sakura said she wants to be like us! She has already showed me and the babysitter that she is observing us!" He looked happily surprised.

"Really? Sakura, my cute flower, is this true?" He turned down and faced me, Gods, here it is, now or never.

"Yes, daddy!" I smiled as I used my left hand to hug him and my right to hug Madoka, they returned the hug lovingly.

'Inner! What now!?'

**"Uhm, Lunch!"** My eyes opened and I pulled back.

"Daddy we made lunch! And I helped."

"Oh? Then I bet it taste really good." I nodded and wiggled so Madoka could put me down I grabbed Kioshi's hand.

"Come on daddy!" He nodded and washed his hands and then we walked over to the table and began to eat.

"So Sakura, how was today? Not too boring I hope." I smiled, if only he knew.

"No way daddy! No day is ever boring!" They laughed at my childish answer.

'How am I doing?'

**"Great! But remember if we ever go out, act shy. Only around our parents can we be cheerful."**

'Okay.' I answered because I couldn't really nod my head. I focused back to my parents, they seemed to be talking amongst themselves about their day. I sighed as I continued to eat my food. The rest of lunch went pretty much the same with only a few questions to answer about my day.

As we finished, Madoka got up to clean the table and I figured if I was going to gradually change Sakura a little to fit me, then might as well do little subtle things.

"I want to help!" Madoka smiled and nodded. I got up and watched me walk up to Kioshi.

"I will take daddy's plates!" They smiled.

"Madoka, have you been thinkng about teaching Sakura some etiquette?" She smiled and nodded, why was everyone asking her that?

"Yes, after today." Kioshi nodded.

"Ne, Sakura." I looked over to him as I gathered his things on the plate.

"Yes daddy?" might as well make them think I'm smart and able to learn quickly.

"If you really want to be like us, then how about learning what daddy does?" I really felt like widening my eyes but I refrained and allowed Inner to gape for the both of us. Did he really mean it? This was progressing faster than I thought, but I had to answer normally. I tilted my head, with childish confusion.

"What daddy does?" He nodded.

"Yeah, do you want to be a ninja?" I looked at Madoka, and was amazed that she was smiling, a little worried but none the less she was allowing me to choose. I smiled and hoped that my eyes were twinkling with the same happiness I felt.

"A ninja! I want to be a ninja like daddy!" I said while smiling wide, they looked happy.

"Then how about we start early, as well?" He asked. Gods, it can't be this easy, but I am not complaining!

'Inner! This is amazing now we don't have to struggle to convince them, and we get to start early!'

**"I know! I'm so glad!"** she squealed while she jumped around inside my head.

"Alright Sakura, if you really want to do this seriously we shall support you fully." said Madoka. I allowed my face to show the expression of child seriousness and happiness.

"Yes. I want to do this!" They looked at each other, smiled and looked at me with their loving eyes. Madoka and I finished cleaning up and whenever Kioshi wished to help me, I would stop him.

"No daddy, I'm practicing!" They looked surprised.

"Practicing what?" asked Madoka.

"I'm practicing to be like mommy and using eti- ettiq-" I tilted my head in confusion, trying to act like I couldn't say the word. They both laughed.

"Etiquette." said Madoka, as Kioshi gave a low chuckle. Madoka giggled as she went into the kitchen to finish washing dishes, while I went into the living room with Kioshi, he turned the TV on and sat on the three seater sofa as I sat beside him.

"You know Sakura, mommy's trainning might me harder than ninja trainning." He said while giving me a secret smile, showing he knew something I didn't. I tilted my head.

"Really?" I asked unbelievingly. He nodded and dropped the subject, I'm assuming to let me find out on my own. How can learning etiquette be harder than ninja training? He must have seen the question on my face cause he soon explained to me.

"Your mother is well known for her lessons in etiquette. Let's just say her students, never forget her lessons." He finished with a chuckle.

"Hey daddy, is ninja trainning hard?" I asked trying to get him to see that I was interested in the subject.

"It's very hard...but don't worry I'll make sure you become strong." I nodded and smiled at him. Leaning back onto the couch, I stared at the TV not really watching it.

'Inner, this is a good first day.'

**"Yeah, hopefully we can get to do the other things soon too."** I smiled as I thought about my new parents. They were both very young, perhaps early thirties or less, they were undeniably in love. I could see the love in their eyes, which was good. I smiled, they were nice and warm, I feel like I could in time consider them as my own parents, but of course, never forgetting my real ones. It would just be like I had four now, which is okay.

Before I knew it, I had fallen into a nap leaning into my new father.

**Normal POV**

Sakura's small body leaned towards the arm of her father as she slept peacefully. Kioshi who had noticed before she even slept, smiled and patted her head affectionatly. Madoka walked in on the scene and smiled. She walked over to the other side of Sakura and sat down.

"It must have been a very exciting day." Stated Kioshi, as Madoka nodded.

"Yeah, she's growing up so fast...but you don't think it's too early to be teaching her these things? She's only two." Kioshi smiled.

"You saw it too right? Sakura herself is ready. Besides, it doesn't change anything she will always be our little flower." He said as he pulled his wife closer to him with his other hand. She leanded her head on his shoulder as they watched their cherished child sleep in a peaceful slumber.

**~Five thirty pm~**

Sakura was waking from her slumber, rubbing her eyes with her small hands and yawning out. She looked around in confusion untill she remembered where she was. She looked towards her left and right feeling a small weight around her and noticed both her parents hands wrapped around her. They must have all fallen asleep at some point. She took this moment to observe her parents closely.

**Sakura POV**

I could see their youth up close and knew that Sakura indeed looked a lot like her parents. When I looked back to Kioshi after memorizing Madoka's features I found him staring at me with a knowing look. I suppose I should feel compelled to feel embarrassed, from being caught staring at my parents as if I had never really looked at them. But being my real parents daughter has made me both blunt and feeling close to nothing in embarrassing situations. Maybe it's because I find what I do reasonable and have no reason to feel embarrassed.

"Mommy's pretty right?" He asked and again I felt like an idiot for thinking I was caught, when in reality it was something completly different. I looked back to Madoka. She was indeed a beautiful woman filled with compassion and love for her family, she reminded me so much of my own. I nodded and smiled sincerely at Kioshi.

"Mommy's really pretty, the prettiest!" I said in a whisper, mindful of the sleeping woman, Kioshi smiled.

"You are too and you'll only get prettier when you get older." I smiled at his words.

"How long did we sleep daddy?" He looked at the clock, I could have easyly found out but they didn't know that.

"About an hour and a half. Why?" He asked looking back to me.

"I wanna start trainning!" he chuckled.

"Not yet my littler flower." I knew he would say that I just wanted him to know I was serious about trainning.

"First you need to learn the history and other things that require reading and memorizing." I nodded.

**"This is great! It allows us to be more free with our main mission, which is to change the plot."** I smiled at both Kioshi and Inner.

"I like to read daddy! That will be easy!" He nodded.

"I know, because my cute daughter is so smart." we laughed and soon our laughter woke up Madoka. She smiled as she fluttered her eyes open.

"And what's so funny?" She asked as she gave us both suspicous looks.

"Nothing my dear." Said Kioshi as he placed a tender kiss upon his wife's temple on her forehead. I smiled at their gentle show of affection. She soon forgot whatever it was she suspected of us as she leaned her head back to Kioshi's shoulder and stared at me.

"So, do you both want to accompany me to the market?" I smiled and looked at Kioshi. We both nodded and soon got up to prepare to go out.

We stepped out of the house which I got a good look at when we left; and proceeded to head into the deeper parts of the village.

'hey Inner, there's something I've been worried if I should ask.' I said as I looked down the road.

**"What is it?"**

'Well you saw my memories...do you think our parents will allow me to associate with Naruto?' She stayed quiet and got nervous.

**"I'm sure they won't hate him, but I won't lie, I'm worried too."** I mentally saddened, if they didn't like Naruto that would be a problem.

'Not that they could stop me from befriending him. Unlike you Inner, I still don't see them as my parents yet so my views for them and Naruto are equal.' I felt her nod.

'I think we should meet him first and gradually tell them we're his friends.'

**"Yeah! they couldn't say anything once they know we're friends with him!"** I nodded my head in resolve and looked infront of me to the different things. As we made our way towards the market, I took in all the sights, it was a wonderful village that was friendly and cared about it's villagers. I was finally getting a little bit more used to things. Everything still felt weird like some sort of dream but it was finally starting to set in my mind, that this would be my new life. I may not be able to go back to my world but I wont loose hope and I wont waste time here, I'll help change things while keeping my hopes up.

We shopped for awhile on groceries and other things, and soon after two hours of shopping we headed back home. I was glad we didn't run into anyone from the main characters...I mean from people I knew important things about. As we went inside the house, we helped Madoka put things away and then it was time for a bath.

**~After Bath~**

"There you go Sakura." Madoka said as she tucked me in. Kioshi walked in, he had books in his hands, about five. He placed them on my desk and came to stand beside Madoka.

"Sakura remember the reading I said you would need to do?" I nodded as I looked at the books on the desk.

"Well, there are books and worksheets inside those. They aren't ninja books, those are books to help you learn how to read and write better." I puffed out my cheeks.

"I know how to read." I stated as any child would. They chuckled at my reaction.

"I know, but you need to be able to read big books to be able to read ninja books. Don't worry, once you finish all those books and worksheets on your desk you will be able to read ninja books, I promise." I nodded and smiled.

"Don't worry daddy, I'll finish really quickly!"

"I'm sure you will." He said as he bid me goodnight and kissed my forehead.

"Hey sweetie." I turned towards Madoka as Kioshi walked out of the room.

"Hmm? What is it mommy?" She leaned forward.

"I don't have work tomorrow or the next day. Do you want me to help you with your studies and start your etiquette lessons?" I smiled wide and nodded at her.

"Yes please!" She nodded and kissed my forehead, turned off the lights and walked out of the room, closing the door behind herself. Shortly after I heard a door shut slowly down the hall. I sighed and closed my eyes, I sat up and got out of bed and walked towards the window. I moved the curtain out of my way and looked outside at the night sky, where the stars were twinkling high above.

"Inner, this was a good first day...oh my god I can't believe it was just my first day here." I sighed.

**"It was really crazy today, huh?"** I nodded

"Yeah, and tomorrow starts our first lessons."

**"I'm so excited I can't wait!"**

"Yeah...me neither." I turned with a smile, dropping the curtain behind me.

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**Next chapter will be Sakura's first lessons and she will find out some interesting charateristics of her parents. Review if you like it!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Authors Note:**...Reviews...Ahh~ they make me feel inspired, anyways thanks to YM CPL IronHide for enjoying my story so much. To answer your question about the bullying, I feel like you are going to like the idea that I came up with, it's very interesting. I hope readers continue to like the story and post reviews!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

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**Lessons On Etiquette**

**Sakura POV**

I woke up from a restful nights sleep, sitting up on my fluffy bed. I sat there for what seemed like five minutes and stared.

"So it wasn't a dream..." I sighed, oh well, time to get up. I looked over to my nightstand on my left. The clock had big red numbers, since the two year old Sakura had yet to perfect her knowledge with analog type clocks. It was eight o'clock again and it was about time I get up. I jumped off the bed and tried to fix it but this small body was making it hard.

"Sakura? What are you doing?" My body froze in the middle of picking up a cover. Crap! I forgot about her! I twirled around quickly and smiled at her.

"Mommy! You scared me!" I ran up to her and hug her legs. She patted down my messy bed hair that was most likely sticking up in every direction.

"Sorry Sakura, I heard noises and came up to check on you." I hid my face into the hug. I was _not_ going to get caught on my second day.

"Mommy! I was trying to surprise you by making my bed!" I explained while I grabbed a hold of her apron. She must have been making breakfast and heard when I jumped out of bed, I need to be more careful.

'Inner, why didn't you remind me?' I felt her rustle awake in my head.

**"I thought you had remembered."**

'...I forgot she didn't have to work today.' Madoka crouched down to be closer to my level of height. She took a hold of my tiny hands into her slightly bigger ones.

"I saw you, and I'm very impressed, but here...let me help you." I nodded while pouting slightly.

"I could have done it...but I'm too short." She giggled at my show of child annoyance. She finished making the bed, and came back towards me.

"Don't worry Sakura, you'll grow taller. Do you want to help mommy make pancakes?" I smiled widely and nodded vigorously, I walked into the bathroom and brushed my teeth and washed my face before going out to my room.

"Come on mommy, lets make pancakes!" I took a hold of her hand as we left my room and descended down the stairs. When we arrived at the kitchen, I could see that she was almost done.

"Ne, Sakura. Do you want to start on daddy's homework he gave you, or do you want mommy to teach you etiquette lessons?" I thought about it and decided to do the homework on my own.

"Lessons with mommy!" She smiled and nodded.

"Alright, we will begin after breakfast." I nodded.

Breakfast went by smoothly. All I had to do to help Madoka was to squirt out the pancake mix into the pan where she then proceeded to flip them over. Once done we went into the dinning room and ate our pancakes. We talked about a few things, not so complicated. We finished eating and began to clean up the dishes and the mess _I_ made when make pancakes.

"Okay Sakura, we'll start our lessons soon." I nodded as I stared up at her, who was making tea. From what I could tell by observing her, Madoka wasted not time with her movements. She new exactly what she was doing, as if in her element, I wonder if it was really from all the baking and house chores or if she was secretly hiding something. But who was I too suggest anything, my own mother was always quite precise about her movements. When the tea was ready she placed the teapot on a tray along with two cups.

"Come on Sakura." I followed her into the living room and as I suspected, we turned left into the space at the back where I had thought was used for this. She placed the tray on the table and sat down on the shorter end of the rectangle shaped side. She tucked her legs beneath herself and sat with a straight posture.

"Sit, Sakura." She said as she motioned her hand towards the other end. I nodded and sat just like her. She smiled at me with pride in her eyes.

"Great Sakura! Without you even knowing, you have already shown some skill in this." I tilted my head at her exclamation.

"You were able to sit down correctly, but you still have a long way to go. Today we will only address a few things." I nodded waiting for her to continue.

"When you get older Sakura, you might have to go to meetings and gatherings where you will have to sit like this. You will have to sit for a long time and you mustn't show your discomfort. When you practice more, you wont even feel that discomfort anymore. Today you will sit like this for as long as you can or until I tell you to get up, okay? This is to see how much you can endure." I nodded.

This...I can already see why Kioshi said this might be harder than ninja training. My legs underneath were already beginning to become numb. When I was back in my world, I could at least last a while longer than this.

"Uhm...Is this all we're doing today, mommy?"

"This and I will give you some important information that you will have to remember." I nodded.

"If mommy or daddy ever have friends over...like Mari our neighbor, you have to address them in a certain way. You can't call her Mari, or Marianne, you are younger than her and just out of respect you have to add -san to her name."

"So...I have to call her Mari-san?" She nodded

"And not just her, it's best if you just add that to everyone's names for respect. Later when you get more associated with each other, you can change it to -kun for a boy and -chan for a girl. After that when you have become really close or important to each other you can just call them by their given name." I smiled wide.

"Like what mommy and daddy do!" She nodded

"So it's rude to not add -san?" I asked

"Well that can apply sometimes, or it can mean your very close to them, or there is something very important going on that you just forget about formalities. Also when addressing very important people like the Hokage, you have to add -sama; and add -sensei for your teachers." Hmm, In the real world I wouldn't really use honorifics unless I was in a place that actually used them or the moment deemed it fit.

"I understand mommy."

"That's good."

"But mommy! What about nicknames, like the ones daddy and you use with me?"

"That is used when the people giving and receiving nicknames are close." I nodded.

"Now that you know when to use honorifics, we shall move on to other subjects." I nodded, and that's how we spent the next two hours sitting, drinking tea, and talking. We talked about how if I was to be the hostess, I was to serve them the tea. When eating at an important place, such as a clan dinner, the patriarchy was to eat first before oneself. I learned many things I didn't know in my world, it was interesting, but also hell. Madoka was a very strict teacher, after the first hour of sitting, she made me get up and sit back down until I could correctly do it. It was painful, my legs felt like jelly but I endured.

She also made me walk several times in and out of the kitchen until I was correctly placing the tray and other things on the table. And since I was two, she made sure I had the other things down, such as: greetings, manners on and off the table, and conversations. By the time we were done, I was completely tired.

"Okay Sakura we're done for now, go up stairs and take a shower. Then you can do some of your homework, and when you finish that for today, come back down stairs and we will practiced what you learned today." I nodded and smiled and turned around heading for my room. God! Each step I took felt like ants were prickling me. I arrived at my room and gathered things to take a shower.

**~After Shower~**

I stepped out of the bathroom, feeling refreshed. I wore a cute pastel green dress with sunflowers on it. My body felt better, after I got the circulation running through it again. I headed over to my desk where Kioshi left the books and worksheets.

'So now to make it look like a smart child did it...hmm...'

**"That's right, you can't just write like you normally do."**

'Actually...' I chuckled as I rubbed the back of my neck.

**"What? You can make it look like a child's writing?!"**

'Well, when I used to help my sister with her homework from school...I would help her out a bit if she was stuck on one. So yeah, kind of. You'll still have to help me.'

**"Sure thing!"** I sat in the chair and pulled the first book in front of me.

'This is so easy...' I thought as I looked through the literature book, I sighed.

'Hey Inner, do you think it's believable that I could read this book and answer the questions?' She had a skeptical look on her face.

**"I don't know...it's a big gamble...maybe."**

'But it's mostly memorization! I'll do it with this book and see what happens.' She sighed and shrugged her shoulders.

**"Fine, lets see what happens."** I nodded and began to read, well skim through the book just incase they ask me questions. I need to be prepared for anything. One hour later and I was done with the book, I was glad I was a quick reader, even though I only skimmed it. I sighed, Madoka hadn't come up and checked on me so that was good. All I needed now was the worksheets, that would take longer, considering the fact that I was making my writing sloppy.

'Inner how does this look, Sakura-ish I hope?" She placed her index finger on her chin as she inspected my work.

**"Yeah, kinda..."** I frowned

'What do you mean, 'kinda'?' I asked as I inspected my own work, it looked childlike but did it fit Sakura's hand writing?

**"It's good...just make it a bit more light, so don't bare down so much."** I nodded and tried again.

**"There! That's much better!"** encouraged Inner, I worked on it for about another hour. It was getting a little annoying having to hop down the chair run to the other side of the room and go back to work, just to see the time. It was one thirty and Madoka had yet to come check on me.

'Wait...Hey Inner.'

**"Yeah, what's up?"**

'Do you remember what mother said before we came up here?'

**"Yeah...what are you trying to...Ooooh!"** I nodded as a rushed through the rest of the questions.

'She said to go back down to her when I was finished so we could practice. You don't think she'll be stricter because we forgot?' I asked as I finished the last questions.

**"I don't know, we were up here for like two and a half hours!"** I checked through my answers to make sure they weren't too messy and not too good.

'Let's go find out.' I walked out with the book and worksheets I had just finished, I had a plan, albeit a little rushed together but...hopefully it worked. I walked quietly towards the top of the stairs and peeked out. Madoka was sitting on the three seater sofa with her back facing me. I breathed in a deep breath, held it while closing my eyes; and then releasing it as I opened my eyes.

"Mommy! Mommy! Look!" I ran down the stairs, careful of where I placed my feet. Madoka turned around and looked at me surprised.

"What is it Sakura?" I arrived in front of her and practically shoved the book and worksheets in her face, trying to exude my exciting achievements.

"Let me see." She placed her cup of tea on the table in front of her, while her other hand reached for the papers and books. She flipped through each worksheet, skimming them. Trying to look nervous was easy, because that was what I was really feeling at the moment. I noticed how her eyes widened every now and then.

"Sakura...this is..." I really don't know whether I should feel good or nervous that Madoka became speechless. My nervousness sky rocketed when she wrapped her arms around me, pulling me into a hug. Was it good? Bad? Did she find out? Am I still ok?

**"Your nervous! Calm down!"** I took in a silent breath.

"Mommy?" She pulled back with a huge smile on her face.

"My little girl is so smart!" My eyes widened.

'We're still good.' Inner nodded, and I smiled at Madoka.

"It was easy mommy!"

"Really?" I nodded excitedly.

"Yeah!"

"Alright, lets practice what you learned with me and then I'll test you on the things the book contained." I nodded my head and that's how we spent our afternoon by practicing. Later, after a lot of practice, I helped Madoka make lunch, and set the table. We ate together since Kioshi was on a mission and we didn't know how late it would be till he returned.

When we finished we watched TV on the sofa. This child body must be what makes me tiered so quickly, as I soon found myself letting sleep over come me.

**Normal POV**

Madoka smiled down at her daughter that slept peacefully with her head leaning on her arm. She gently moved her and placed her head on her lap so she could be more comfortable. It was already getting late, when the door opened, being closed right after. Madoka turned her head to look behind her, she saw her husband came out of the hallway. He smiled at her as he approached her. He placed his hands on the top of the couch and leaned over to see his pretty daughter resting her head on the lap of his beautiful wife.

"How was today?" He asked as he lowered himself slightly, as he reached his right hand to pat Sakura's head.

"It was wonderful. You should have seen her today." Kioshi smiled as he looked at Sakura and turned to his wife. He didn't miss the proud look she was portraying.

"That good of a day huh? Good thing I get to rest tomorrow." Madoka smiled at the good news.

"Kioshi, look at these." Madoka said as she handed him the worksheets she received from Sakura. He took them from her and read over them.

"Did you help her?" He asked as he continued to read her answers.

"No. She did everything by herself in two and half hours probably less since she went in to take a shower." He nodded

"There are a few mistakes and her writing is a bit messy but...this is amazing." Madoka nodded her head.

"And she remembered all that I had told her, a few common mistakes but everything was good." The silence was filled with the shifting of papers.

"I think I should start training her." Madoka looked shocked.

"Already!" Kioshi looked over to his wife, staring at her in a serious manner.

"Only the basics, besides, she has shown that she can easyly work on these academic studies by herself; and if she needs help, she has us here." There was only a small moment of silence until it was broken by Madoka.

"Alright, but not the dangerous things yet." Kioshi smiled

"Only if she's up for it." he added, which his wife frowned only to sigh and nod her head in compliance.

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**Another chapter done alright! If your wondering why I'm making the chapters go through a whole day, it's because I'm letting it progress naturally. Later it will skip to a week later or a year later, who knows. Hope you keep reading and review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Authors Note:** I got a review that made me realize that I don't have a consistent posting schedule. I have decided to post a new chapter every other day. So I'll start the schedule starting today and so the next one is on Thursday. If there should ever be a time where I couldn't post a chapter on the appointed day, then I will give a warning in the previous chapter. I hope you continue to read and on with the story!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**First Day Of Training**

**Sakura POV**

I was startled awake by a loud noise, if my groggy senses where anything to go by. The door in my room was just pushed open, with an unnecessary force behind it. After the shock of being startled passed away, I looked towards the door. Kioshi stood in front of me with an expressionless face. I looked over to the clock...it was five thirty in the morning. With my face blank I looked back at Kioshi, before falling back on the bed.

'Inner! What does he want so early in the morning!?' I wasn't a morning person, my brain alone could barely function correctly.

**"I don't know, but it better be freaking good to wake me up at this hour!"** Shouted Inner making it hard not to get a headache from such early actions.

"Oh? I guess you don't want to train with daddy after all...and here I thought we we're going to have a great day." I shot up so quickly that my bed hair was most likely pointing up in funny directions, but I didn't care.

'Training! Did he just say that?' I asked Inner to make sure I wasn't hearing things I wasn't supposed to.

**"Yeah! He said training!"** I smiled widely in surprise.

"But daddy! What about the books?" I asked, wanting to understand why he changed his mind.

"Your mommy showed me the work you did yesterday. I was so impressed that I have decided to teach you the basics now. Is that okay?" I don't know how I did it but my head was nodding up and down so fast I became dizzy. I jumped up on my bed and threw my hands up in childish joy.

"Yes, I want to daddy! Yay!" He smiled as I hugged him.

"Good. I'm glad your so excited. Get ready and meet me downstairs." I nodded, he soon left and I jumped out of bed, trying and failing to make the bed nicely. I had so much excitement inside, I could barely concentrate.

"Inner this is great! Even though he's only teaching us the basics, as long as we're shown how to tap into our chakra reserves the rest is easly learned!" She frowned

**"Are you crazy! How can the rest be easy!?"** I was hurriedly brushing my teeth and washing my face as I mentally answered her.

'I didn't mean it was going to be easy, I just meant if we wanted to learn more advanced material that he didn't want to teach us like...tree climbing than we could do it by researching.'

She nodded finally understanding. I went into the closet and decided to wear something comfortable, that wouldn't restrict my movements. I put on some pants that reminded me of the ones jonin wear. Then I put on a loose blue tee-shirt, loose enough for me to breath and tight enough so it wouldn't restrict movement. I ran down stairs and looked around noticing that Kioshi wasn't inside, so I went into the kitchen and through the mini hallway towards the back door. As it opened, I saw him standing near the trees. I wonder if he noticed that I had arrived. I took the time to study him, he was a tall man. He stood straight and had his face up, looking up to the trees, for what, I didn't know. He seemed to be in a traquil state of mind as he calmly inspected the tree. I slowly walked up to him and stood beside him and looked up. I still couldn't see what he was looking at until I saw a bird nest, with current residents inside. There was the mother and father bird around their three baby birds. They all chirped happilly, it seemed to me that the young birds were going to attepmt their first flight.

I have seen many birds take their first flight into the big world that I used to be from. There were multiple sucesses and a few failurs; but they always tried again. The birds on the tree were flapping their wings, but I knew if the birds didn't flap their wings faster, they weren't going to make it.

**"Your so negative."** Inner said when I informed her of my thoughts.

'No, I'm realistic, and it's not like I want the birds to fail.' I continued to watch, then it happened. One of the birds that seemed to be ready was positioned on the edge of the nest. It flapped it's wings rapidly and jumped off, it flew a bit unsteady at first, but then flew more comfortably. The second bird stepped up with courage after seeing the first bird, it jumped off and succeded aswell. All that was left was the last bird, the one who needed to flap it's wings faster. He jumped up to the outer ring of the nest and looked around where he saw his parents in a few branches over together with his kin. The group of four chirped and moved their heads side to side as if beckoning him to try.

'He's not going to make it.' I said after a while of watching his poor attempts to shake off the fear and flap faster.

**"You don't know that! Come on birdie! Flap faster!"** Inner encouraged loudly in my head.

I focused my attention back onto the bird ignoring Inner. After about three minutes of hesitation, the bird positioned himself to fly. He leaped and flapped his wings with new found strength; but it wasn't enough, he was soon plummeting down to the ground. I found myself taking a step forward, intent on catching the bird, barely paying attention to Inner's loud shrieking and the other birds frantic chirps. Before I could even reach him, Kioshi placed a hand in front of me, blocking me from getting closer.

I looked up at him as he crouched down and shook his head, before going back to watching the scene. I turned back and saw the bird flutter it's wings, turning himself over so his back wasn't facing the ground anymore. The bird stretched it's beautiful brown wings as far as he could; and used them to glide down to the ground safely. I let out the breath I didn't know I was holding softly as Inner was more dramatic. She was overjoyed that the bird landed saftly and not to it's doom as she puts it.

The bird soon flaps it's wings and joins his family up on the branch. They huddled close together and rubbed heads. There behavior as well as their soft chirping, signified to me that they were bidding their goodbyes. That was the sad part in first flights. Birds would take their first flight and leave to start their own family, where they would do the same as their parents. This scene was always a bittersweet one. They stayed together for a few minutes before all flew away, leaving behind the last baby feathers they would shed.

I looked on even after they had left, Kioshi stood up and headed towards the feathers. He crouched and picked one up, staring at it with a pensive expression.

"You are a lot like those birds, Sakura." Outside, I made it appear as if I was confused but inside I smiled sadly at his implications.

_One day, you will also leave._

I walked up to him and hugged him around the neck, since he was crouching on the ground. Children especially young ones, had a way of sensing when someone feels distressed. Especially when it revolves around their parents, so I knew it wasn't out of character.

"Daddy...I'm not like those birds." I could almost feel his sadness wash over the area, and engulf us, as if it was a thick blanket.

"And how are you different?" He asked after a while. I smiled a small, gentle smile as I got on my tippy toes and kissed him gently on the cheek.

"Because I won't fly away from you." I said in a gentle manner. I know it was extremely risky...but I felt it. That child sense that he was distressed; and in this world where death was possible daily made the moment more serious. He hugged me then, and I knew I was still okay with my secret. The moment was heartwarming and I knew Kioshi really treasure his family just as I treasured my own. This was the beginning of a beautiful relationship between him and I, where we felt similar about our loved ones.

"Alright Sakura, let's get to training." I nodded as we pulled away from the hug. I followed him to the center. He sat down, cross legged and I followed his example.

"Sakura, one of the things I'm going to teach you is how to tap into your chakra, so you can expand your reserves." This was going exactly the direction I wanted it to go. Since I knew next to nothing about real ninja knowledge this was the perfect time to ask questions.

'Inner, we need to make sure we remember what he says so we can train later over the week.'

**"Roger that!"** Inner said

"Okay Sakura, along with chakra training. I will show you how to practice a few katas." I nodded and then tilted my head.

"Daddy...what's chakra and katas?" He smiled and patted my head proudly.

"I'm glad you asked. Katas are a individual training exercises for people who practice martial arts." I nodded, I knew that from back in my world. I took lessons because I found it interesting; but I'm sure it's different here, since I'm being taught by people who had used it first.

"Chakra, on the other hand is essential to even the most basic of techniques; it is the moulding of the physical energy present in every cell of the body and the spiritual energy gained from exercise and experience. Normal chakra is a form of life energy all living individuals naturally produce to some degree. Chakra is the resulting form of energy when two other forms of energy are mixed together."

"The two energies are referred to as physical and spiritual energy. Physical energy is collected from the body's cells and can be increased through training, stimulants, and exercise. Spiritual energy is derived from the mind's consciousness or the soul and can be increased through studying, meditation, and experience. Having these two energies become more powerful will in-turn make the created chakra more powerful." I nodded, it all makes sense so far.

"Is that the only way to make more chakra?" I asked.

"Well a good way to build up chakra in the body is to spin it into a tight spiral inside, as you meditate, also you can nullify a technique by reversing the spin of the chakra within your body." Oh? I didn't know that...but I guess I don't know many things. I nodded.

"Today you will practice moulding your chakra by first accessing chakra from your chakra coils; which you'll then travel it through your chakra pathway system and finally release it out of the tenketsu." I nodded excitedly.

'Inner you got all that?' She nodded.

**"Yup! Ready to use whenever!"** I smiled, Kioshi stood up and walked over to the table which had scrolls and books all over it. I hadn't even noticed them when I came out.

"These are materials you will have to learn and remember. For now, you are to enhance your physical and spiritual energy, which I will teach you today. By the end of today Sakura, I will have you knowing how chakra feels and how to safely move it through your body. Tomorrow, I or your mother wont be here so I want you to practice; but not with your chakra, not until I know you can do it safely by yourself, okay?" I nodded, if that was all it took for him to trust me and give me a free pass to train then I will quickly learn it.

"Okay daddy! I understand." I stood up when he came over with three scrolls. He handed me two scrolls, while he unraveled the one in his hand. He turned it over and showed me the contents. It had only pictures, well, they were silhouettes of forms, that are used in martial arts.

"Do I have to copy the pictures?" I asked while tilting my head, he reached out and patted my head.

'Inner, have you come to realize he always pats our head like a child when we make him proud or happy?' She rolled her eyes.

**"Duh! You are a child, and we do many things to make our parents proud!"** I smiled.

'Yes, I guess your right Inner.'

"Okay Sakura, lets begin the practice." I nodded.

We practiced the forms for three hours, the time just seemed to fly for the both of us. Since the katas were being shown to me in slow motions I was able to easyly copy his movements; and if I did something wrong, Kioshi would correct me. I had learned some foot placements, hand techniques, stances, striking points, and blocks. Kioshi didn't teach me all the moves in those catagories but he taught me enough for even I to forget.

'Inner you got all that?' She nodded her head.

**"Yup! Hold up! Of course I did! What were you assuming?"** I raised an eyebrow.

'Nothing. It was just a lot of information, it's quite impressive that you can remember all that.' She blinked and then blushed slightly while scratching the back of her head.

**"...Thanks."** I shook my head and smiled at her embarrassment.

"Sakura! Dear! Its nine thirty, time for breakfast." Nine thirty already? We stayed out for longer than I thought. When we stopped I noticed that I was sweating slightly and a bit tired.

"Sakura, we're done for now. Later after breakfast we can continue, I will give you the things you need to start a work out." I nodded, ready to continue learning more.

We stepped inside and walked into the kitchen where Madoka was waiting for us.

"Oh my! How cute!" She squealed, cute? Who? I looked around and noticed Kioshi was looking at me with a smile too. Why?

'Inner do you think we have anything on our face?'

**"Uhm, I don't think so..."** I tilted my head at Madoka.

"Who's cute mommy?"

"You are!"

"Why?" She laughed at my question

"Your all flushed on the face. You and daddy must have worked hard. Are you tired?"

"Uhm...not really mommy. It was fun!" I answered honestly.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it Sakura." Said Kisoshi as he patted my head. We washed our hands and then went over to the table to eat breakfast. Once done, I helped Madoka clean up.

"Sakura, since you just ate how about you work on your academic studies." I nodded at Kioshi.

"Sakura, work on that for a little so then we can have more lessons on etiquette."

"Okay!" I said and walked up the stairs to my room.

'Inner, should we do half a book or the whole thing?' I asked as I entered my room.

**"How about half. Just so they wont get suspicous and ask us to show them. "** I nodded as I sat down on the desk.

"I was thinking about taking a shower but it would be meaningless if we're just going to train some more." Inner nodded.

**"As much as I hate sweat and dirt, I guess we can handle it."** I chuckled and shook my head.

"Inner, your such a girly girl." She pouted at my accusation.

**"Oh, really! And what are you supposed to be!?"** I smiled as I wrote on the worksheets.

"Well, I'm a girl obviously." I answered unconcernedly.

**"Well duh! What I meant was...Augh! Your so mean!"** I shook my head at Inner's rambling. I worked on my homework till it was twelve, since it didn't take me long to do half the worksheets along with skimming the book. I worked on a little bit on the other worksheets, starting in the middle so they wouldn't suspect. I went downstairs and found Kioshi reading in the living room and Madoka already seated at the table.

"Hello Sakura." Madoka nodded at me.

"Hello mommy." I said as I correctly sat on my spot from yesterday.

"Good work sitting down Sakura!" She smiled at me.

"Thanks mommy!"

The beginning of the lesson went just like yesterday. We went over the same steps I did yesterday, not as many times; but it still hurt. When we finished reviewing, she asked me to sit and I would start my endurance practice.

While I sat, she talked. She informed me of many other etiquette tips. She even taught me how to read people, just to get important signals. For a baker, she knew how to read people well...which made me more cautious about the things I did and said around them. It was two twenty three and my legs where numb, they had passed the tingly stage along time ago. Madoka had even gotten up, saying she had to make lunch. I endured the numbing pain, so they could see that I was completly serious. I know my child face had yet to completly master the art of not showing emotions, neither did I in my world. I had a feeling my face was twitching and I was trying to not wince as much as I felt like it. Kioshi on the other hand seemed to enjoy watching me squirm in my discomfort. After a while of not-so-secret glances, he began to laugh...he was actaully laughing at my situation!

"Daddy!"

"Hahaha sorry...it's just...you look so funny!" I frowned for real, transferring my discomfort to annoyance.

"Daddy! Quit laughing at me!" I said as I leaned forward only to freeze and wince at the sudden spasm in my leg.

"O-ok mommy! I-I think I'm done for today!" I said while I pushed down on the table for help.

'This is going to hurt...' Inner gulped.

I stood up, and the joints of my knees popped. I wiggled my legs and tried to get my circulation running so it could relax my muscles and nerves. I sighed once it felt relatively normal.

"Very well done Sakura! You have proven to us that you can endure for quite a while." I smiled weakly.

"Now what should I do?" I asked, it wouldn't take much longer for lunch to be ready.

"Come on, lets show you your workout." I nodded and followed him. We stopped when we arrived at the table. He held onto some thin looking cloths, they appeared to be weights?

"Sakura, come here. Let me show you what you will be using." I walked over to him and waited for him to continue. He crouched down to be near my height and I took a better view of the weights. They looked nothing like weights, not even the ones in my memory that I saw Lee and Gai using. They looked light, almost as thin as some gloves would be, perhaps a little thicker. The black cloth like weights wrapped around the wrist and the ankles.

"What are you thinking Sakura?" He asked curiously, he must have been watching me inspect them.

"What are those daddy?" I asked as I continued to stare at the weird weights.

"These are weights, you will wear them from now on. Only take them off if your in danger. Sakura, you must listen to me as I explain, okay?" I nodded to show I was listening.

"You might be curious as to why they look so light, correct?"

"Yeah."

"A few friends of mine recommended these as I told them I would be training you." His friends? I tilted my head up at him, since I was still really short, weither he crouched or not.

"Your friends?" I didn't ask because I was shocked he had friends. No, I asked because I wanted to know _who_ he had been talking to, about me. If they were not from the main cast in the anime/manga, that would make my life easyier but...I had this nagging feeling I wouldn't like his answer.

"Oh, their just some of my shinobi friends."

'...Thanks Kioshi...that narrows it down.' I mentally frowned.

**"Don't be sarcastic, what if he's just can't tell us."**

'I can actually believe that.' thinking about the ANBU.

"These are special weights that they recommended me, they don't look heavy but they are. Look." He held them out and placed one on my right wrist. Just as I thought, it felt as light as a piece of cloth wrapped around my wrist. He turned my hand around so my palm was facing up. He placed two fingers on my wrist, his index and middle finger.

"Pay close attention Sakura." Under his fingers it faintly glowed and soon weight was felt pushing down on my wrist. When he moved his fingers, there was a glowing character, reading 'one'.

"Wow, that's pretty cool, daddy!" I moved my hand around as I felt the weight. He must have used chakra.

"It is, isn't it. It's a new item so tell me if you like them when you get used to them." I nodded at his easy request. Now to get some answers.

"How did you do this daddy?" I asked as I stared at the weight in wonder.

"I used my chakra, do you see this character?" I looked at what he was pointing at, the character appeared to be fadding.

"Yes, it's the character for one." He nodded.

"That means your on level one. When you get to control your chakra, you will also be able to make the number go up. For now you will be on level one for this whole week, next week you will increase it, and so on." I nodded excitedly as he placed the other weights on my left hand and ankles. He also placed some chakra inside them, but where did it go?

"Hey daddy...where does the chakra go?"

"Very good question! That's an added bonus to this new item. The chakra you place inside to get heavier stays as a sort of storage place, for when you need it." I smiled up at him with amazement.

"Wow! That's pretty smart!" He chuckled at my amazement.

"Yeah, it's pretty amazing what ninja's can do with a bit of fuinjutsu." I tilted my head up at him as he stood and walked over to the table again.

"What's fuinjutsu?" He looked back at me.

"It's a tyoe of jutsu that seals objects, living beings, chakra, and other things within another object. It can also be used to unseal objects from within something or someone." I nodded, just like Naruto and his father who was said to be a genius at fuinjutsu.

"That sounds interesting!"

"Sakura, since when did you learn such big words?" He said smiling down at me, aw crap!

**"Don't stand there like an idiot! Say it's from studying!"** I smiled brightly up at him.

"From studying!" I said proudly, he patted my head.

"I can see it's working out for you." I nodded and sighed. He turned over when he found the paper he was looking for.

"Okay Sakura this shall be your routine, until you can handle more." I took it from him and read through it.

**~Morning~**

**Stretch**

**Sit ups**

**Push ups**

**Practice katas**

**~After Breakfast~**

**Academic homework**

**Stretch**

**Practice katas**

**Chakra practice**

"When you finish the after breakfast part, your mommy should be back from work and you can have your regular etiquette practice. When you finish with her you can decide what you want to work on." I smiled and nodded.

"Will you be able to handle this?"

"Yup! I'll try my hardest daddy!" He smiled affectionatly and patted my head.

"Alright, how about we work on your chakra?" I nodded and walked after him excitedly towards the middle of the yard. We sat like before, facing each other, and sitting cross legged. He placed an opened scroll between us and then placed his hands together in a hand sign.

"Sakura this is a tiger hand sign, you will later know more of them."

"Okay daddy!" He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, the aura around him became tranquil. I looked at the contents in the scroll and read through the information. It showed me which organs to concentrate on and explained what we would be doing.

"To tap into your chakra, first concentrate on your chakra coils that surround and connect to your chakra producing organs." After a few seconds of concentration he did other hand signs; and soon two other Kioshi's sat on either side of him.

"This is called the Clone Technique, but don't get excited they're intangible, or have no substance. They are only used to distract the opponent, they can be easily distinguished if you know what to look for. For example, these clones don't have shadows and they don't disrupt the area around them, like they don't kick the dust, crush grass." I nodded, he dissipated the clones and looked at me.

"You read through the scroll right?" I nodded

"Okay so you know what to concentrate on, all you need to know is what to look for, give me your hands." I did as told and as he held my tiny hands, I felt a warm, tingling sensation.

"Do you feel it?" I looked up at him.

"Is it supposed to be warm and tingling?" He looked wide eyed.

"Yeah, you picked up on it quite fast, later you wont feel it so much and it will become natural to you. I am surprised though, usually you only sense the tingling part...you may be a good sensory type." Sensory type? Like Karin?

'Inner, that would be a good skill to keep practicing as well.'

**"Yeah! Let get crazy awsome!"** I raised an eyebrow.

'Remember Inner, we're getting strong for a reason.' Inner pouted

**"Yeah, yeah. Way to kill the mood."**

'What? I just don't want us to go all power hungry, think about Sasuke, he's a perfect example.' Her eye twitched.

**"Leave my Sasuke-kun alone! He's cool! Handsom! And stong!"** I shook my head at her shrieking. Say one thing about her Sasuke-kun that she thinks is bad...or good and she goes on a long rant. So I tend to just tune out the rest.

"Okay Sakura, now that you know what it feels like, try to concentrate on your chakra coils." I nodded

"Do I have to use that hand seal?" He nodded.

"Yes, hand seals manipulate the exact amount of chakra necessary."

"Oh, okay. Like this?" I positioned my fingers into what I thought was what he did.

"Not quite. Here." He reached over and moved my fingers to the correct places.

"Now concentrate." I closed my eyes and concentrated. I didn't concentrate straight away to my chakra coils. First I calmed my breathing and then made a mental image of what I was looking for and where it would be. Then I felt for the chakra, I know it had to feel tingly but as for the warmth, I don't know weither all chakra feels like that or just Kioshi's.

'Inner, concentrate with me.' She did the same hand signs and concentrated. I tried looking for just the tingling part; and after completly concentrating on just inside me and tuning everything out. We found it, that small but tingling sensation. I frowned, this was hard. I kept a strong concentration on that small point. I didn't want to loose it but it was hard to stay on it, and after a few more seconds I lost it. I opened my eyes and noticed how quiet things where.

**"Sorry...we lost the concentration..."** I shook my head slightly.

'No...it was pretty hard...there's nothing for you to apologize for.' I looked up to Kioshi.

"How was that?" Feeling tiered mentally, I was ready to take a nap.

"That was amazing for your first time!" He exclaimed proudly, I smiled weakly at him.

"Is there anything I did wrong?" asking to make sure I didn't mess up anything, other than my concentration.

"Mess up anything? No, you did things correctly!" He said happily as he stood up. I followed his lead into the kitchen where lunch was ready.

"Why hello, I thought I was going to have to call you in again." I raised and eyebrow and tilted my head.

"Again, mommy?" She turned back to me.

"I called out to you two about three times." She answered as my eyes widened. Three times?

"But I didn't hear you..." Kioshi began to laugh.

"An amazing prodigy in the making." My eyes widened, Prodigy? What? No! I was forced back into the conversation when Madoka began to speak.

"Oh! I always knew! My little Sakura is so smart!" I smiled weakly up at her, we had lunch but I paid little to no attention at the conversations. I tried not making it weird and asked Kioshi if it was fine to take a shower, he had said we were done with the physical part for the day. I went up to take a shower and hoped they wouldn't suspect anything, if they did, hopefully it was my exhaustion.

I entered my room and gathered things for my shower.

**"Why is it that your being quiet more often around our parents?"** I smiled at Inner's question.

"Because I'm getting them more comfortable with the idea that instead of the hyper, Sasuke crazy girl you saw. They will know the Sakura that has two minds, one of the original and one thats completly different." She nodded as she understood the logic behind my words.

**"Okay that makes sense."**

"It's not like I'm going to completly change her into me, it's more like I'm changing myself to be more like you. I want the new image of Sakura to have equal amounts of both of our personalities. Is that okay with you?" I asked Inner.

**"That's...yeah, I would really like that..." **I heard sniffling inside my mind and raised an eyebrow.

"Are you crying?" I asked, the sniffling soon stopped.

**"No!...Why would I be crying..."** She defended loudly, even with her words I could still hear the sniffling but didn't comment on it.

"Alright, time to take a nice relaxing shower." I opened the door and stepped inside.

**~After Shower~**

I sighed as I brushed my pink shoulder length hair.

**"What's up?"** I stopped brushing my hair and looked at my reflection. The young child with bright viridian eyes. Wearing a light pink dress, with yellow butterflies, stared worriedly back at me.

"...Do you really think our parents think of us as a...prodigy?" I asked as I looked uneasyly at the reflection.

**"Why is it hard to believe?...To answer your question, I think their starting to see us as one. But why are you worrying?"** I sighed as I closed my eyes, placing my hands on the table top framing the sink.

"It's not a good thing to be seen as a prodigy so soon...I mean we we're eventually going to make it seem that way, but..." I shook my head and looked at the mirror.

"It just seems like everything is happening too fast, if mother and father really think of us like that. It wont take long for others to know; and we don't want that." She seemed confused.

**"Why...is that bad?"**

"Because if people get interested, then it won't take long for them to want to know more...Do you get it?" I asked as I got back up and finished brushing my hair.

**"Yeah...I get it."** I nodded and walked out of the bathroom and towards the living room.

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**Okay, so you all know the next update will be on Thursday. I hope you guys liked the chapter; and review if you like it, or have questions. I will surely read it!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Authors Note:** Okay, thank you for reviewing I enjoy reading them! I want you all to know that I take into consideration all of your reviews, as you have seen in previous chapters. There will be an important Authors Note at the end, and no I'm not going to stop writing, it just involves the story and your opinion. Please leave me reviews of your opinion, but of course you don't have to if you don't want to.

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Revelations and Goals**

**Sakura's POV**

I arrived at the top of the stairs and saw them sitting side by side in the long sofa. The atmosphere was warm and inviting, until I saw who was with them. It was our neighbor, Marianne with a man.

'Inner, who is that?' I don't ever remember seeing him, then again neither did I see Marianne.

**"It's her husband, I don't really remember his name, sorry."** I shook my head

'No, that's enough information. This is actually a good thing.'

**"How?"** I smiled as I inspected the man.

'It gives us a chance to show our extreme shyness, and unwillingness to interact with people we feel uncomfortable around.' She frowned

**"I thought we we're going to change that."**

'We are, but later when we want them to really think of us as a prodigy.' She smiled brightly as she understood my reasons.

**"I get it! If we act all shy, and show we aren't comfortable with people. They will pick up on it, and not pressure us. That could work; but what if it doesn't what then?"**

'We are going to keep everything average, except when we practice alone.' Inner nodded.

I walked over towards them. And shyly hid behind Kioshi's leg.

"Sakura your already finished. Come on, don't hide we have guests." I bowed a little as I smiled shyly up at Marianne, using my bangs to make me look at her shyly.

"Good afternoon Mari-san..." She smiled at me along with the others.

"Oh how cute! She's shy! Sakura this is my husband Yashiro, you don't have to be shy around him." I just hid even more, but nodded.

"Good afternoon Yashiro-san." I bowed my head and spoke softly.

"Madoka, I'm surprised she speaks and acts so well." Commented Yashiro, with a curious glance at me. Inner and I will have to be on the look out for him.

"Yes, I have been giving her lessons, but just the basics so far." They nodded at her. Kioshi stood up from his spot on the sofa.

"Sakura and I will just excuse ourselves from your work conversation and head outside." Madoka nodded and he picked me up and walked outside. This was my chance, Kioshi had a tendency to answer most of my questions.

"Hey daddy, is Yashiro-san a ninja?" I asked with a childish curiosity.

"No, he works with mommy. He's a good guy. You were being really shy in there." He said as he put me down. I grabbed the yellow ribbon on my back and fiddled with it to appear nervous.

"I just get nervous..." I took a peek through my bangs, he looked down at me sadly.

"Sakura...if its about what happened to you before, then don't worry mommy and daddy love you just the way you are." He kissed my forehead. I blinked but didn't comment. He turned to walk towards the center.

'Inner...what did he mean by before?' She stayed quiet for a while.

**"I'll tell you about it later."** I tilted my head, confused by her evasive attitude.

'Alright...' I didn't continue the conversation. I sat down in front of Kioshi.

"Alright Sakura, last training for the day. You will try to move the chakra through your chakra circulatory system." I nodded for him to continue.

"Okay try to concentrate on your chakra again, don't worry I can tell whether you have found it, and when you do, try to move it." I closed my eyes and placed my fingers in the correct placement. Inner and I both concentrated on finding the chakra again, after a few minutes less than last time we found it. The tingling sensation was pretty easy to remember. I frowned, this was as hard as before, it was hard focusing on something so small. I spent a few minutes of just feeling it and remembering it.

I was right, it felt slightly different than Kioshi's. His felt warm, reminding me of the same warmth his aura would be like when he gave us affectionate hugs. I suppose all chakra feels tingly; but just as Kioshi said the more I focused on the feeling the more comfortable it was. The sensation was leaving and I concentrated on the other part of it.

If I had to discribe it, I would say it felt...jumbled. I concentrated harder on it. How was I supposed to move it? I imagined the chakra gathering together and spiraling; but just imaging it wouldn't work.

"Good job Sakura!" My eyes snapped open loosing my concentration immediately.

"What daddy?"

"What are you talking about. You just spiraled your chakra inside." My eyes widened.

"Really! But all I did was imagine it." He smiled

"That's good! Your supposed to imagine it, thats where the spiritual part comes in. I told you before, the physical part is so you can contain and endure it, while the spiritual part is so you can mentally control what your doing."

"Oh, That's good! I thought I was doing it wrong." I smiled up at him.

"Good. Now do it again, but try and also feel it going through the circulatory system." I closed my eyes, so we could try and do it again. We still lasted a few minutes searching, though it took less than before, but only by a few seconds. When we found it, I figured the only way for it to go out is through the circulatory system. If we found a place for it to go through, then we were going through the right direction.

It took me five times until I got my tiny little chakra to move. I kept on loosing concentration, and with my over sensativity for things surprising me, I kept loosing it. On the fifth try, I had gotten the hang of wiggling it. All that was left was to move it comepletly. On the last try, I breathed in deeply before attempting to move it. When I felt ready and somehow knew Inner was too, we moved it together as one. We calmly concentrated on only moving it, and we soon, very slowly moved the chakra through the circulatory system. We got really far...well far for us, since this was the first time we even suceeded to move it. We were going to move it further, but a sudden blockage stopped that attempt. The obstacle in our way felt wierd, not bad but weird.

"That's enough for today Sakura." My focus was broken and I lost the mental image I made. I opened my eyes and looked at Kioshi.

"Why couldn't I get through?"

"You found a tenketsu."

"What is that?" He smiled

"Their points in the body where the chakra can be released." Oh? Right, it's what the Hyuga clan used.

"Oh, Okay. Are we done for today?"

"Yes, it's already getting dark." I looked around just barely noticing my surroundings. It was getting late, how long did we stay outside? I have to make sure I don't always loose track of time when I'm concentrating on something. I went inside following after Kioshi and noticed that Marianne and Yashiro were still here. They stood up and began to walk towards the hallway leading them out.

"I will make sure to come in and check on her." Promised Marianne, Madoka nodded her thanks. All the adults said their goodnights.

"Goodnight Sakura-chan! I will see you tomorrow!" I smiled at her and bowed a little.

"Goodnight Mari-san, Yashiro-san." They both waved and stepped out.

"Sakura!" I was suddenly picked up and twirled around the hallway.

"Mommy?" She stopped spinning only to hug me tighter.

"I feel like I didn't get to see you all day! It's not fair that daddy's hogging you all to himself!" She playfully glared up at Kioshi who was half a head taller than her. He in-turn smiled and hugged his wife from behind as well as me.

"What's wrong with having a little father-daughter bonding time. You did have a mother-daughter day yesterday." She pouted but soon smiled and kissed his cheek.

"Let's eat dinner, I was able to make it before they had arrived." I nodded and allowed Madoka to carry me towards the kitchen. Dinner went by fast, we talked about our day. I answered some questions that they asked me of my academic homework and I kept it at an average level. Kioshi went on and on about my acomplishments and warned me not to practice with chakra until he correctly showed me how to use. When dinner was done we stayed at the table and talked. I also figured out why Marianne and Yoshiro were here. It appears that apart from Marianne visiting a friend, Yoshiro who worked at the bakery over the weekends, came to report his day. I was happily surprised by the desert Madoka had made. It was just as good if not better as what Inner said and I imagined.

She made three little hot chocolate cakes. The ones that have the creamy chocolate inside, and topped with fruits and powdery sugar. It was really good so I told her I wanted to bake just like her. She smiled happily and said I was sweeter than any pasterie she ever made.

I went up stairs once we finished talking and picked out something to change into. It was a cute baby blue nightgown, with silver stars scattered on it. It was nine forty two and I wasn't tierd. I mean, the exercises were taxing for a child my size. And yet, I couldn't fall asleep. Instead of going to bed, I walked over to the window sofa and jumped up on it. The cushions where creamy white and had fluffy pillows. I opened the windows and allowed the wind to flow through my short pink hair. The night air felt great, and the sounds where relaxing. It reminded me greatly of my world, and the sounds, smell, and sight of it all. I crossed my arms and laid them on the small table like feature the window had along with the sofa. I closed my eyes and breathed in deeply. When I closed my eyes, I couldn't even tell the difference between the two places, but when opened them, I would see my new world.

**"You should sleep."** I smiled and closed my eyes again.

"I can't...to many thoughts."

**"Then tell me some of them."** I chuckled.

"I thought you could hear them."

**"Do you want me to?"**

"It doesn't matter."

**"Then I wont when I can, or when it's important."** I smiled

"I was thinking about our parents."

**"What about them?"**

"I was wondering why Sakura hadn't been taught all this when she was little. But then I realized that as a normal two year old, she would only want to play. And when she could understand, before she could get interested in what her parents did, she would only be having thoughts about Sasuke."

**"What's wrong with thinking about Sasuke-kun!"**

"Nothing. I just realized that Sakura missed a good opportunity when she was younger. Not that I know if she really didn't get any training from them.

**"That can't be all your worried about."** I chuckled at her correct guess.

"You know me pretty well." She giggled

**"Your observation skill has been rubbing off on me, now I can't even stop from looking for something that might be off."**

"My bad...and yes, your right. There is something else." There was a complete moment of silence where the only sound was that of the night creatures and the noise they made were almost deafening.

"...I'm sorry Inner, but I know how much you wanted to help Naruto and meet Ino; but we can't." I could feel her eyes widen and I closed mine.

**"...Why?..."** I frowned and covered my face with my arms.

"I tried thinking about different ways of doing it, but all are just too risky. No matter how hard I think about it, no _loving_ parent I know would let a two or three year old out by themselves. Of course, I take into consideration the fact that we are in a safe and friendly village; and that we are to be ninja's. I know kids who are to become ninja's are given more independence because they can protect themselves, but not toddlers."

**"I...understand..."** I felt her sadness.

"Don't worry Inner. Do you really think I wouldn't think of something positive in this. Even though you say I'm negative, I do think of positive solutions. I know it's sad but if we plan, study, and train for a year and eight months, we can make great preparations." She looked up and smiled finally finding the hope in my plan.

**"Alright and what else?"** I lifted my head and looked out into the vast dark sky.

"We have to avoid suspicion, being thought of as a prodigy, and not meeting the others."

**"But why! I mean what if it's an accident, like at the park or something."**

"I know, but we can't let that happen. Listen to me, what if we we're with our parent's and we stumbled apon Naruto? What if they don't like him, and our previous plan gets ruined?"

**"Okay, that one I can understand, but what about the others?"**

"Just like you believe in privacy, I believe in equality. It wouldn't be fair that we make friends with the others, just because they have good parents and backgrounds that would allow them to come play, unlike Naruto. No, if we're doing this plan for a year and eight months, then _after_ that time frame, when we turn four we will find them all. I'm sure with the early training, our parents will trust us enough to let us go around the village on our own for a while. Plus we will still have around two years till the academy starts, so we'll have enough time to make up for lost time." She sighed dramaticlly after a moment of being pensive and placed her hands on her hips.

**"Fine. It's not like I could convince you other wise, your too stubborn."** I chuckled

"That's right...thanks Inner, for agreeing with this plan." She shook her head.

**"No. It was honestly the most reasonable one we have, we really need to plan...and train...and study, Augh! This is so much crap!"** She stomped around inside my head ranting about, how much we needed to do.

"Don't worry Inner, since our goal will always stay the same."

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**Some may be mad at me for that last part, but as you have read I'm trying to make it realistic. It can't be too realistic since it is Naruto; but as realistic as one can get if someone where to wake up in the Naruto world. I also want to ask a very important question that I would love your opinion on. As you read the last part of the chapter, I want to know if you want me to skip the whole year and eight months time frame. If you do, don't worry I will have small summary like flashbacks. If you don't then the chapters will be one for each month, so twenty chapters, and I cant promise them to be long. One last thing, you don't have to tell me now, but I perfere if I could get an answer no later than the next three chapters posted, so you have about six more days. **


	7. Chapter 7

**Authors Note:** You guys are so nice, your words inspire me to create great chapters. You still have four more days to tell me your opinion whether you want me to skip time or not. Remember that you don't have to if you don't want to, I already have readers telling me their opinions, which I have read by the way. There are a couple questions about the bullying, her father's reference, and her being a prodigy, that I can't answer without giving things away. Please just bare with me and you will get your answers through reading, I promise. Also, I know that most OC inserts follow the original plot line, but I want to change a lot of things so I hope you like the changes I make and continue to support me!

**3 reviewers want me to skip**

**1 doesn't want me to skip at all **

**1 want's me to skip only half**

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot. **

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**The Bakery and The Encounters **

**Sakura's POV**

I woke up to a silent house. It was expected, I knew I was to be alone most of the day today. It was eight eighteen in the morning.

"Inner its time to train."

**"I'm ready when ever you are!"** I jumped off the bed and went into the bathroom. I brushed my teeth and washed my face. I changed into comfortable purple pants, along with a black loose tee-shirt. I put on some black ninja shoes and walked outside.

"Okay first we stretch." I began stretching out my body, making sure my muscles were relaxed enough not to get cramps later on. Our stretching lasted a good thirty minutes before we we're ready for the other exercises.

"Time for sit ups." Sit ups we're easy and I liked doing them. With my child body I only did one hundred and I also did crunches. The weights I got yesterday felt different, not extremely heavy just different.

"...Now for push ups."

**"Augh! I hate push ups!"** I raised an eyebrow.

"Have you even done them before?" I asked as I got into position.

**"No, but I've seen them on TV before!"** I rolled my eyes at her explanation. I lowered myself down and then pushed to bring my self up. My tiny arms were already shaking.

**"This is bad, we won't be able to do a lot."**

"That's why we're doing it, to get better." We managed to do one hundred, in between breaks, but we still did them. I rolled onto my back, laying on the cool grass. I was sticky with sweat and my breathing was labored. I watched as the puffy clouds above me, moved across the blue sky. My aching limbs felt like bricks were on them, but I got up anyways ignoring their protest.

"Alright Inner, you know what to do." She nodded and I soon got images of the katas we worked on yesterday.

"Inner, tell me if I do them wrong." She nodded and I closed my eyes and began to place my self in the positions. Inner was a great help, she pointed things out and gave some advice.

All in all, it was a good first day practice. After almost four hours of katas and more easy exercises we took a break. I walked inside and headed for the fridge. There was breakfast ready so we began to eat. When we finished our healthy breakfast, we decided to do some homework. We worked on it for an hour and a half, before stepping outside again. We stretched for thirty minutes and then started our exercises. After an hour of working on different types of exercises, I was hurting.

**"It hurts just to keep our eyes opened!"** Inner shouted as we laid on the grass. I sighed as I looked at the clouds high above us.

"Ahh...I can see why Shikamaru likes watching clouds." Inner frowned.

**"Why?! It's boring! Although...after training it doesn't feel that bad; but I still wouldn't watch them all** **day."** I smiled and took in a deep breath, the wind was nice and refreshing.

It was already three so Madoka should be coming back soon. I reluctantly stood up and walked inside. I arrived to my room and headed for the bathroom once I got all my cloths gathered.

**~After Shower~**

"It always feels good to take a shower and clean off all the sweat and dirt after exercising." Inner rolled her eyes.

**"I'm just glad we don't feel sticky anymore."** I smiled at Inner's childish concerns.

**"So what do we do now?"** I went over to the window beside my bed and opened them.

"We are going to meditate."

**"But dad said to wait for him to work on our chakra."**

"I know, all we're going to do is work on our concentration skills. You have to admit, we are sorely lacking in that category." She nodded in agreement. I walked over to the center of the room where there was a table to sit by. I tucked my pastel purple dress with pink Sakura's underneath me. I then placed my hands together on my lap.

"Might as well practice our etiquette endurance training as well." I closed my eyes and concentrated.

'Inner, you try to concentrate inside, while I'll take care of the outside.' She nodded. I focused on the sounds around me. There wasn't much inside the house, so I focused on listening to the sounds outside. There were birds outside along with the crickets. I focused on the wind rustling through the tree leaves. If I concentrated enough I could even hear some people talking outside. They were young voices so it was most likely civilian children. I couldn't understand what they were saying because it was muffled. When the wind would pick up I could here it flow inside through the open window, rustling the curtains. I felt the soft carpet under my toes and the way my hair would tickle my face and neck. I heard my steady breathing and could feel the slow, calm beating of my heart. Suddenly a saw an image, it was fuzzy but it felt so real, like a vivid dream.

There was sunlight pouring through a window, which was covered by a pink curtain. The soft light was bright enough for me to see my surroundings. It would appear that where ever this was, it had wood like railings all around me. Whatever I was laying on felt fluffy and warm, but I felt restricted, as if a blanket was wrapped around me. I tried to move but found that I couldn't, noise was heard off to the side. Soon after a voice was heard but I wasn't able to make out anything they said. It was as if they were far away, but I could clearly see an approaching shadow. When they came into view I couldn't make out any features, it was too fuzzy. Their arms came towards me and I felt myself being pulled up into their arms.

This was weird. I could feel the way my body felt pressed against their chest. I was small yes, of course, since I was a two year old, but this didn't feel right. I could feel the outline of my body pressed against them, it felt way younger than two, almost a baby size.

The stranger, who I now knew was a woman, began to speak but I couldn't understand anything. The image soon started to darken around the edges and spread towards the middle. The last thing I could see was the unmistakable blonde hair and pretty smile.

**"Hey, someone is here!"** I snapped my eyes open and looked around.

"Inner, did you see that?"

**"Yeah...What was it?"**

"I don't know, lets discuss it later." I stood up and walked towards the stairs.

"Sakura." It was that man from yesterday. What was his name...Yashiro? I think that was it.

"Good afternoon Yashiro-san." He kindly smiled up at me.

"Good afternoon Sakura, your mother said to ask you if you wanted to go to the bakery, since she will be working late." Go to the bakery? That wouldn't be such a bad idea. I nodded shyly down at him.

"Are you ready to go right now?"

"Yes, I'm ready." He nodded

"Alright, lets get going then." I walked down the stairs and followed him out the door. I took this time to analyze him. He was tall, probably as tall as Kioshi's height of five foot nine inches. He had brown hair and he had a warm personality. He was probably just as Kioshi had described him as. A nice guy. He looked down once he noticed me staring.

"What's wrong Sakura?" He asked as we walked down the street.

"Do you know why mommy had to work late?" I asked quietly, he was a nice guy and all but I had to keep up the image just for a few months.

"Well it seems the Akimichi dropped in today, they usually do once in a while." I froze in mid step, the Akimichi?!

'That's Choji's last name! Crap!' Inner ran around in circles inside my head.

**"See! I told you this could happen!"** I knew it was a possibility...but so soon? I shook my head when Yashiro noticed me stop. I walked along side him, I was trying to think of possible solutions; but by the time I knew it, we had arrived. I remember Inner saying it was close to the house but this was like around the corner. The outside of the bakery was small and nice. Their was a doughnut outside as the logo, it reminded me greatly of our Haruno symbol. They must of done it with that purpose, since it is called The Haruno's Bakery. We stepped inside and I immediately used Yashiro as a sort of shield. I quickly scanned the area for the Akimichi, and instead I found Madoka speaking with a woman.

"There's your mother, do you want to go?" He asked as he looked at me, look at the woman. Thank the gods he's observant. I looked up at him and smiled shyly.

"No, I'll just sit and wait for mommy." He nodded and lead me to a table for two. He asked me if I wanted anything but I said I was fine, he soon left to finish up some orders. I took the chance to observe. The whole bakery was two stories, the bottom was for customers to buy and eat, while the top was probably used to bake. There was a comfortable amount of customers in at the moment, and thankfully there wasn't anyone I knew of. That woman, that Madoka was talking to, could it be the Akimichi that Yashiro was talking about? He never did say how many where here.

The woman she was talking to had light brown shoulder length hair. She had black eyes with color eye shadow that matched her clothes. I don't really know much about all the parents, but she seems to be Choji's mother, by looking at her facial features. There wasn't anyone else that could possibly be form that clan. She had a medium size bag in her hands and with the expression on her face, I could tell she had just came by to buy pastries and take home with her. The place was comfortable, there were shelves on the other side of the counter which contained samples of the different pastries. There was Yashiro and two other girls behind the counter, taking orders or serving them. The theme colors were the customary Haruno colors, red, white, some pink and some other colors here and there. They also had beverages to choose from, this was like a modern café, and all in all, the place was well managed and pretty popular.

After a few more moments of them chatting, the woman left. I waited until she was completely gone before walking towards Madoka.

"Mommy!" She turned and smiled at me, she came and picked me up for a hug.

"Hello Sakura! How are you today?"

"Great!" Being held in Madoka's arms suddenly gave me the image I had a few minutes prior to this. I shook my head, and smiled.

"Mommy are you almost done?" She smiled sadly.

"Not yet honey, but soon I will be." I nodded.

"How about you wait here; and I'll get you a treat while you wait for mommy?" I smiled and nodded. She kissed my forehead and put me down. I walked over to the table I was previously at and waited.

'Inner about what happened before, what do you think it was?' I asked as I continued to look around.

**"I'm not sure, though I'm positive we saw the same images. And didn't it feel familiar?"**

'Yeah, like we've been there and as if we knew the woman.'

**"Yeah, but maybe it was nothing."** I wasn't so convinced and I knew neither was Inner, but it was best to just drop that subject for now. Madoka arrived with a small purple transparent cup filled with chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla ice cream.

"Here sweetie, eat up!" She passed me the ice cream and a spoon.

"Thanks mommy!" She smiled and pat me on the head as she stood and waved bye. I sat patiently and ate my ice cream, which was amazing.

'Inner we should really come here more...' My mouth hung open mid sentence and I'm pretty sure that clinking sound just now was my spoon hitting the table.

**"Oh. My. God. Is that...Sasuke-kun!"** Inner shrieked so loud I couldn't help but wince.

'Why are people appearing now?! And it just had to be Sasuke and his mother. No wait, this could be good. At least it's the anti-social Uchiha's. I grabbed my cup and spoon and ran as fast as I could to the top story when they had their backs to me.

**"What are you doing! Go back! We have to talk to Sasuke-kun!"** I walked up the stairs and looked through a door less room, ignoring Inner as she began to rant. Madoka was inside talking to others who were making the pastries. She was most likely teaching them. I walked in and was noticed by a young woman who had dark brown waist length hair, which was pulled up. Her eyes were a lovely shade of blue. If my artistic eye for color didn't fail me, her eyes would be the color named azure blue.

"Hello! Are you lost?"

"I'm here to see mommy." She crouched down near me.

"Of course! How could I not notice! You have her facial features! Let me introduce myself, I'm Chouko!" I smiled, what a lovely name.

"You have a pretty name Chouko-san! I love butterfly's." She smiled brightly at my compliment.

"Why thank you. I like them too! I also like cute little kids like you!" She smiled.

"My name is Sakura, like the flower." I explained childishly, although I was supposed to act shy, Chouko just had a nice, gentle personality that allowed me to relax. I kept my voice soft, and with a polite tone.

"You have a lovely name as well Sakura!" I smiled and then noticed that Madoka had finished talking.

"Mommy!" Madoka looked over and smiled in surprise.

"What are you doing here?" I made myself look sad.

"I can't?" I looked up at her through my bangs.

"Of course you can. Just be careful okay?" I nodded and smiled.

"Of course mommy!" Madoka then looked at Chouko.

"Chouko are you done for the day?"

"Yes my shift ended. I was just heading out when I ran into Sakura-chan here."

"Alright Sakura, just wait a few more minutes and we can go home." I nodded.

"I can stay with her down stairs if you want."

"Are you sure?" Chouko nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah, you know how much I like kids. It won't be a problem."

"Then if you don't mind, it will only take a few more minutes." Chouko nodded and then turned towards me.

"Come on Sakura-chan we can go down stairs." I nodded and gave Madoka my empty cup, before following Chouko. As we walked down stairs I quickly looked around for anyone familiar; and was relieved to see almost no one down stairs. It would seem closing time was almost here.

**"I can't believe we didn't talk to Sasuke-kun!"**

'Inner stop whining, you know why we couldn't.'

**"I know, but did you not see him?! Plus if you think about how cute he is now, just remembering the memories I saw in your head, makes me want to grow up faster. He is so hot when he get older!"** I felt like face palming myself but decided against it, since I was with Chouko.

"So Sakura, what do you want to do?" I tilted my head up at her as we sat down.

"I don't know Chouko-san." I spoke softly.

"How about we get to know each other by asking each other questions?" I smiled and decided to play without giving away too much.

"Alright you first Sakura."

"Uhm...what's your favorite color?" I'll start off with childish questions and observe her.

"Hm, I like the color...yellow! Like the Sunflowers! Okay, my turn! What is your favorite flower?"

'Hey inner, should I answer honestly or should I answer how Sakura would?'

**"Well, you are Sakura now. And this is the perfect time to make our change in character, right now that we're young."** I smiled

"I like Lilies. What about you?"

"I like Sunflowers! Do you like animals?"

"Yes, I like butterfly's."

"You named an insect not an animal." I shook my head.

"A butterfly is both an insect and an animal." Technically it is in the insecta class but also in the animalia kingdom, so it's both.

"Wow! Your pretty smart!" She grinned down at me as she cupped her face with her hands and propped her elbows on the table.

"I like to read."

"Oh yeah. I only read a little so your probably smarter than me." I smiled and shook my head.

"You are very smart Chouko-san." She smiled and patted my head.

"Thanks! I've always loved playing with kids! Even when I was younger I always wanted to be a teacher." I smiled at her commendable dream.

"You would be a good teacher." She smiled.

"I don't know..." She looked a bit depressed.

"Why aren't you one?"

"Well I don't know if I could really pull it off." Hmm, from what I have observed, her patience and kind behavior would be ideal.

"What do you want to teach?"

"I've always wanted to teach in the arts department." I tilted my head.

'Well that narrows it down.'

**"Don't be sarcastic!"**

'I'm not, there's just so many categories.'

"Chouko-san, what kind of art? Dancing? Singing? Drawing? Martial arts?"

**"That last one isn't even supposed to be there!"**

'Of course it is. The martial arts are a different type of art, kind of like the art of dance. It's art performed by the body.'

**"Okay smarty pants, I get it!"** I shook my head slightly.

"Well, all of them! Except for the last one...I can't fight." She giggled sheepishly, while scratching the back of her head. I looked at her seriously, she was a nice person, had good views, a good goal, and was lacking in self confidence.

"Chouko-san, may I ask how old you are?"

"I'm eighteen." Ah-hah, that's why her attitude was comforting. She is the same age as the age I used to have, or still mentally have.

"Ne, Chouko-san would you teach me?" She looked surprised, but then looked a bit worried.

"I don't know...what would you like to learn?" I looked at her seriously.

"All of it. I like the arts too. And I would really like it if you taught me." She looked euphoric.

"Really? You want me to teach you?" I nodded and smiled.

"Yeah!" I said cheerfully, I would help accomplish the goal of boosting up her self confidence. She nodded excitedly.

"If...If you really want to, then yes! Of course I would love to teach you!" I smiled up at her, she was finally doing something she wanted.

"Sakura! It's time to go!" Madoka called from across the room. When I looked around I noticed the place completely empty. I jumped off the chair and pushed it in, Chouko and I walked up to Madoka.

"Mommy! Is it okay if Chouko-san teaches me?!" I asked with a pretty smile on my face. If she hesitated, I would just pull the oldest trick in the book. The sure fire method of getting what you want. The puppy dog eyes.

"Oh?" She looked over to Chouko, who looked quite nervous actually.

"Mommy, I want to learn the different types of arts!" I said with a cute little pout and big watery eyes.

"Really? It's fine with me, as long as you really want to." I nodded enthusiastically.

"Alright, when do you want to do this?" She asked both of us. When would be good?

"Mommy, what about after etiquette lessons?" She thought about it, and then nodded.

"Yeah, that sounds good. Is that okay with you Chouko? It'll be around six." Chouko nodded happily.

"Yeah! That's a great time. Thank you, and I'll see you tomorrow Sakura!" I nodded and she excused herself before stepping out of the bakery with a light bounce to her steps. We were now the only ones inside.

"That's the happiest I've seen her." She kindly smiled down at me. That smile assured me she didn't just let her teach me just because I asked.

"Really, mommy? She looked the same to me since I stated talking to her."

"Well, you just make everyone happy, don't you?" She laughed and picked me up to hug me lovingly. She held onto me and patted down my hair.

"You might not understand what you've done Sakura; but you have just encouraged someone greatly." I smiled as I hugged her back. If only she knew.

* * *

**Okay about the mothers of the characters(except Mikoto), I'm going to change them; and the dad's stay the same with only a little bit changed. Hopefully you enjoyed the chapter and remember to review!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Authors Note:** Two more days left for you to tell me your opinions! So far reviewers want me to skip the time frame, but you still have time to tell me your opinion.

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Insecurities**

**Sakura's POV**

When we arrived to our house it was already pretty late. I had found out from Madoka that Kioshi was to come home late, also that he inserted chakra in my weights before he left. That was probably the reason they felt diferent this morning. We ate and then had our lessons which went by pretty quick. It was time for me to go up and sleep so I excused myself from the living room, where we were watching TV.

"Alright, goodnight Sakura." She wrapped her arms around me and I hugged her around her neck. I walked upstairs and went straight to the closet to change.

**"I know what your doing."** I stopped in the middle of changing and raised an eyebrow at her question.

"Uhm...changing?" She shook her head.

**"No. With that girl at the bakery."**

"Oh?" I continued to dress myself and headed for the bathroom to brush my teeth.

**"You know we can't help everyone."** I frowned.

"We're not."

**"You just helped out a complete stranger, your too nice!"** I rolled my eyes.

"Inner, why is being nice a bad thing?" She sighed at my question.

**"You just can't help everyone! It's not possible! And don't you think we're learning enough! Why add more?!"** I finished brushing my teeth and sighed.

"Inner, it doesn't matter if we help one person or a hundred more. And we can handle the work load, besides what else have we to do? If we really want to change the plot we're going to have to train harder. I know there will be times we just want to quit and it's going to hurt, but we can't stop." She stayed silent and I walked into the room, towards our window's sofa.

"I used to think all of you were not real. Do you realize how painful it is to go to sleep one night thinking everything's all right and then wake up and be alone? Everything was taken away from me, my home, my family, my life. Sure, I'm still alive and that's good but now I've been given a huge responsibility. I know it was ultimately my decision to change the plot and that I didn't have to change it; but just knowing that doesn't help me. I can't just sit around and do nothing."

"If I can't go back home...then I want to help change things for the better for my new life. But I also don't want to lose hope in finding a way back home. I know there is no possible way to make the whole world perfect...I know...but I still want to try and help the people that I can here." A silence followed after my words, making me feel small and vulnerable and made the room around me feel bigger. I pulled up my knees and hugged them, and hid my face in my arms. I both liked and disliked silence. I liked it because it helped me think, though I disliked it because it made me realize the things I could have done.

**"You shouldn't bottle up your feelings like that..."** I stayed quiet thankful that Inner broke my train of thought.

**"Do you know you talk when your sleeping?"** I smiled.

"I'm sure thats true..."

**"I think being nice is good. All I was trying to say before is that you shouldn't always trust everyone so soon. It could get you killed."** I turned my head to face outside. The window was closed and yet I could see the wind rustle the leaves.

"I know...I just can't help but think that their still savable."

**"Alright...I'll help you help people..."** I smiled in amusement.

"Are you being nice?" She hmphed in indignation.

**"Don't push it...I'm not as nice as you!"** I smiled gratefully.

"Thanks. I'll try not to be too nice from now on." I joked

**"Like that will happen."** She whispered it softly, but I was able to hear her.

"I think it's time to sleep, we really need it." I jumped off the sofa and headed towards the bed.

**~Next Morning~**

I woke up feeling lighter than the past four days here.

**"I think it's because you finally spoke out about your insecurities."** Inner taunted.

"Yeah, yeah. I was never good at voicing out my problems." I told her honestly.

**"Well, we have to change that! Do you know how hectic it gets inside your head when you get worried?!" **I rolled my eyes.

"Whatever." I walked into my normal morning routine. Today I put on black pants and a dark green tee-shirt. When finished I went down stairs and thought about what Inner said. I knew it was going to get dificult if I continued to want to help people, but I couldn't help it. I reached for the door knob and opened the backyard door.

I stretched for thirty minutes and started my one hundred sit up's. Once done, I went into the push-ups and then began my katas. My forms were alright, they weren't perfect but no one ever was. I practiced on them for about two hours, until my stomach growled. I went inside and ate breakfast, after that we studied on our homework for an hour and a half. It wouldn't take long before I finished my homework and have to start reading some books. I sighed and walked outside, we stretched, then did exercises for thirty minutes. I went inside before Madoka came home and took a shower.

About the time I was brushing out my hair, Madoka came into my room.

"Hello Sakura. I see your finishing up." She said as she looked over my pastel yellow dress with a white flowery print. She came over and helped brush out my hair.

"I love your hair Sakura." I smiled up at her through the mirror.

"Me too!" She smiled and put down the brush once she was done.

"Lets go down stairs." We walked back into the kitchen and made lunch together.

"Hey mommy, is daddy coming home early?"

"Yes, he will get here by dinner time though." We ate after we had finished making it and sat down at the table. We drank a nice Jasmine tea while we had our lesson. Today's lesson was on preparing the tea, it was fun learning new things. Although it wasn't fun when Madoka went into serious mode. She made me do the same steps over and over, until she was sure I had done it correctly, three times in a row. I learned about the different types of tea and which one to use on what occasions.

After one hour of Madoka teaching me everything she knew about tea, the next hour I spent doing the endurance and concentration training. My muscles were cramping up from training and sitting; and I was still hurting from yesterday's training. So concentrating was hard when a prickling feeling in my leg wouldn't stop. Once the clock turned six I stood up and stretched out my numb legs. A knock was heard at six fifteen and I knew it was Chouko, by the way she hesitantly knocked.

"Welcome Chouko!" Madoka opened the door so Chouko could come in. She was carrying a bag with her, it was pretty big.

"Hello Madoka-san, Sakura-chan." She greeted, I walked up to her and bowed a little.

"Good afternoon Chouko-san." She smiled and turned to look at Madoka.

"Is there a specific place you want us to be in?" She shook her head no.

"Anywhere you guys want to go is fine by me. What about you Sakura?"

"Outside would be fine." They nodded. Chouko and I walked towards the backyard and Madoka stayed inside. We went and sat on the table to our right.

"So, do you know what you want to learn?" Hmm, I already know most of them and it would just be boring to learn the same things I already know.

"Dancing." She smiled brightly. I think thats the best to learn, since there are multiple traditional ones I don't know of. Singing and drawing are things I can just do on my free time.

"That's my specialty! Alright, do you have anything in particular you want to know?"

"Uhm...how about traditional ones." I asked quietly. She nodded her head and stood up.

"That's fine. Come here for a sec." I walked over to her and waited for instructions.

"I will teach you forms first. There are many tradional dances and some of the most beautiful in my opinion." She went into her bag and pulled out a red silky shawl.

"Here, you watch me and then I will show you. This is a tradional dance from right here in Konoha." I nodded and moved out of the way, giving her full access to the center. As she stretched her limbs out I took the time to observe her. She was a medium height girl about five feet five inches. She had her hair down and it was also medium length. She wore non restrictive, comfortable clothes...Maybe I too should have changed?

She stepped onto the center and got into her first dancing position. She began her dance in a slow motion, dancing to music in her mind only, as she stepped in rythme like patterns. She twirled and the light breeze that was passing through would blow her hair and shawl in the air, giving her an angelic look.

**"This actually might be fun!"** Happily stated Inner as we watched Chouko freely dance in front of us.

Her dance was fitting for Konoha. It started with slow beautiful movements, like that of the current peace in Konoha. Once her movements began to speed up, that was when I could see the Will of Fire that I heard in many occasions in the anime/manga.

I was baffled by her change in attitude. She was confident in her movements and loved what she was doing. I could instantly tell this was her element, she moved with precise timing and to a beat that only she knew of. Her feet would lift her slender ankles and twirl in a graceful way that reminded me of a butterfly. Her hands would lift and pull the shawl in graceful movements, causing the shawl to move like waves. She knew the wind's pattern and her movements followed it, making me think of the leaves this village was so famous for. Her steps slowed and she soon came to a complete stop. I clapped at her beautiful dance.

"That was beautiful!" I stated cheerfully. She smiled brightly at my compliment.

"Thank you! Do you want to learn it?" I nodded immediately.

For the next hour we spent the time learning the forms. Chouko was a good teacher and I enjoyed learning from her, which by the looks of it she enjoyed it too. The forms reminded me of the katas that I was practicing and I knew with Inner's help this would be a good decision made. By the time Chouko was leaving I told her I would really like to learn other dances that she knew. So we both agreed to devote our lessons solely on dancing.

Kioshi came in and we all ate dinner together, while talking about our day. When finished, we all sat in the living room and watched TV; before I knew it, I had fallen asleep.

**Normal POV**

"How was her art lessons?" Kioshi asked his wife as he carried a sleeping Sakura in his arms, up to her room.

"They went great. Chouko was very happy teaching Sakura; and Sakura seemed really into it too. I'm glad Sakura want's to do something she likes and not what we do."

"I'm sure she likes doing what we do. She's surely showed it to us during her lessons." They arrived inside Sakura's room.

"Yes, she always looks eager to learn something new. How is her training with you?" She asked as she watched him place her on the bed for Madoka to change. He held onto her hand that rested beside her sleeping form.

"Great. There are some mistakes, but she _is_ just a child. And I don't want to push her too much." He smiled down to his daughter before standing up and walking out of the room, to allow Madoka to change her and tuck her into bed. Once done she kissed her forehead and walked out of the room quietly, completly missing her daughter open her eyes.

**Sakura's POV**

My body was being lifted off the sofa. I could feel arms carrying me and walking together with me in their arms. They said something but I couldn't understand, someone else than spoke, with a voice much softer than the first. That's when I realized I must have fallen asleep and the person carrying me was most likely Kioshi, while the other was Madoka. I was too tiered to open my eyes so I just waited till I could get back to sleep. I was layed down, on what I presumed was my bed. And Kioshi must have sat down on the bed, because I felt the bed slope down. They talked but I couldn't hear them for I was falling asleep again, something warm then grabbed my hand; but before I could process what it was. An image appeared, like the one I had yesterday.

This one was different, I felt normal but also different somehow. Normal, because I could still feel my normal two year old body. Different, because it was like I was watching a movie, sort of like how Inner showed me my last memories. I knew though that this was not my memories.

In front of me was a blurry image of two people standing in a very white room. One was on the hospital bed, while the other stood and had a hand reaching towards the one on the bed. I tried focusing on the people, trying to see if I could distinguish any features. All I could see was blurred colors. The one on the bed had blonde short hair, while the one standing had a redish color. Soon, just as fast as it appeared, it was blackening around the edges. I knew that just like the last time, this image was fading; but before it disappear completly I noticed what the person who was standing was reaching for. The one laying down held something in their arms...a bundle with...a blurry pink color!

As the Image dissapeared so did the warmth in my hand, it was replaced by a pair of hands changing me then I was covered with a blanket. I felt a pressure on my forehead before they left, and once I heard the door close. I opened my eyes to an empty room. I stared at nothing in particular and although Inner was awake, neither of us said anything.

**~In the morning~**

It was early Wednesday morning...and I felt like laying in bed all day.

**"It hurts!"** Exclaimed Inner

"I know...but we have to get up." I said with no movements to get up. It really did hurt but we had to get up and train. I sat up and regretted it, my legs and arms felt like bricks. And it wasn't the weights, although they did feel a little heavier. I jumped off the bed and felt like going back to it. I trudged to the bathroom and went through the regular routine.

Once done, and not feeling any better, I walked over to the closet. Today I wore some black pants and an orange tee-shirt, with the black ninja shoes.

"I feel like I'm stealing Naruto's look..." I said as I looked into the mirror in my room.

**"No, you look fine. Naruto on the other hand goes way to far with that orange monstrosity!"** Inner stated.

"It's not that bad." I said referring to Naruto's choice of clothes.

**"Not that bad! Are you crazy?! You will never wear something like that!" **She threatened.

"I never said I was going to...but now that you mention it, maybe I will. Just to annoy you." I said and smiled when she began to rant, just as I predicted.

**"Oh no you don't! I won't allow it!"** I chuckled at her attitude. Inner was so childish, she reminded me of a cat. Cute one moment and angry the next. I walked down stairs, yawning as I did.

"Augh...I feel like doing nothing all day."

**"Stop being lazy! Your the one who was going on and on about training."** I rolled my eyes.

"Of course I'm still going to train hard, I just want to complain about it. It makes me feel better."

**"Your so weird...but I knew that. How can someone be so compassionate but frank! So nice and yet so mean! So willing to change yet so stubborn! And so dense and so smart!"** I frowned.

"You just contradicted all of them." Inner sighed

**"I know! That's what you are! A contradiction!"**

"I am not dense."

**"Dense enough not to go talk to Sasuke!"** I stopped my stretching.

"Is that what this is all about, not talking to Sasuke?" I asked

**"Come on! Who wouldn't want to talk to him?!"** I rolled my eyes.

"Me." She gasped dramatically.

**"What?! Really! Are you serious?!"** I laid down to start my sit-ups.

"Well, I'm obviously going to have too, what with going to the same class, being on a team and all."

**"Are you saying if you didn't have too, you wouldn't?"**

"That's not true. I'm most likely going to run into him prior to school."

**"Your so nonchalant." **I raised an eyebrow and smiled.

"Oh~ Your using big words now." And as expected, she fell for it.

**"Hey! I know a lot of words!"** I shook my head and chuckled at her temper.

"Yeah, yeah."

We continued with our training until breakfast time. We ate and cleaned up the dishes before doing homework. After that we went to finish up our training for the day.

"Hey Inner? Do you think we should work on our dance forms?"

**"Yeah! Great Idea! I was getting bored of the same things over and over!"** I closed my eyes and watched as I got images appearing in my mind. We worked on them for an hour and got pretty good. We could now do ten correct forms repeatedly...it wasn't much of a completed dance, only like the first fifteen seconds.

**"Dancing is hard!"** Inner voiced out.

"Yeah, I always took forever remembering the correct sequence of moves. I learned quick and I remembered the forms, I just never got the sequence of them in order. The only reason I'm doing better now is because you show me step by step the sequence." She smiled and scratched the back of her head.

**"I like to help you when I can."** I smiled and nodded.

"Thanks, I know." I said as we finished training for the day.

* * *

**One more update before I know whether you guys want me to skip some time or not. Thanks for those of you who have reviewed or just enjoy reading my story!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Authors Note:** I'm sure you know by reading this story that I like to make things realistic. I am really happy that so many of you like my story, and I want you all to know that, yes, I do have a plot to all of this. I feel like I should explain why Sakura's still two. To make it realistic I have to find a good point where it seems normal to skip. Because I can't just randomly move on to a year and eight months later. I have to make sure you can understand her new personality. Plus, I don't know about you guys but I always like to read a good story with lots of chapters, which there will be a lot of. So please, if you enjoy it, continue to read it knowing I will make tons of chapters; because this story is far from over.

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot. **

* * *

**Convenient Trip**

**Sakura's POV**

I walked inside the house but instead of going to my room I continued down the hall. I stood in front of the door that would lead me inside my parents room. I needed to find out whether that dream or vision or whatever it was meant something. I opened the door and stepped inside. Everything was the same as the last time I had come in.

I walked over to the shelves containing pictures. I scanned through them looking for anything familiar. I kept looking as my anxiety grew, that's when I saw it. I sighed and closed my eyes.

**"Outer..."**

"I know..." I re-opened my eyes and stared at the picture in front of me.

There was a woman with short blonde hair sitting on a white bed, she looked slightly pale; but she glowed within her clear beautiful eyes. She was in a colorless room with nothing but the numerous flowers around her to display color and the small bundle in her arms. A man stood over them, expressing so much happiness that I thought he was going to burst any moment.

**"This is...when we were born..."** Inner quietly spoke.

"I figured. But why did we see it? And I'm getting the impression that the first image we had, was ours too." Inner nodded in agreement.

"But why are we seeing them?" I asked out loud without meaning too.

**"It could be because you aren't technically Sakura so your getting her memories..."** I shook my head and walked out of the room.

"I guess that could be it..."

Today felt odd, but I haven't figured out why. It wasn't only because of these memories, there was something else.

It was almost time for Madoka to return, so I went over to the living room to wait for her. I sat on the window sofa and looked out of it. There were kids playing outside, they looked to be about eight years old. Most likely civilians, if not they would probably be at the Academy.

"Inner, do you think there's something strange about today?"

**"No, not really."** I frowned it couldn't just be nothing, there was this feeling that something new was going to happen. Madoka came in, and I noticed that she was earlier then usual.

"Hello Sakura! You didn't take a shower today?" I looked down and noticed she was right.

"I forgot...mommy, you came in early today!" She smiled down at me.

"That's right! Today if everything goes well, daddy will give us some good news!" Good news? Maybe that was what I was waiting for. That feeling from before came back so I hoped it really would be good news.

"What kind of good news?" I asked while tilting my head.

"Well I can't tell you that. It will ruin the surprise!" Now my curiousity was gained.

"That's not fair mommy!" I said childishly. Madoka just giggled and picked me up.

"Well its a good thing daddy's going to be here earlier than usual."

'What do you think it is?' I asked Inner as I was set down on a breakfast stool.

**"I'm not sure. But I hope its good!"** I nodded and then helped Madoka with lunch.

We had barely finished washing the dishes after eating when the door opened up. Kioshi walked in and to keep up the image I ran over to him.

"Daddy! Your back!" He picked me up into a hug.

"Hello Sakura, how are you today?"

"Good! But mommy said you had a surprise and she wouldn't tell me."

"Hmm. Mommy said that..." He looked over to Madoka and smiled.

"How did it go?" He nodded his head to her with a secretive smile.

"What is it?" I asked looking between the two.

"How about I tell you after we get back from the park?" My eyes widened. The park?

**"This could be dangerous! What if we see someone?!"**

'Well...we can't just say no?' It was most likely he wouldn't believe a child didn't like the park.

"Okay...do we have to? Can't you just tell me here?"

"I thought you would want to go, since we would be there." He frowned looking worriedly at me.

"No, I'll go!" He nodded and soon we were on our way to the park. Thankfully it was a civilian park, so I most likely wouldn't see anyone. As I played around in the park swings, Madoka and Kioshi sat at a table farther away. The park was as normal as any other civilian park. It had swings, slides, a sand box, and other play things. It also had a track around it for any one who enjoyed exercising. There was a creek to my left and it seemed like a good place to just relax.

I walked over to it and went down the three steps it had as an entrance. The water looked fresh and clean. I crouched down and noticed the pebbles at the bottom.

I was so engrossed at the nature around me, that I didn't notice someone come up to me.

"Hey! Forehead girl!" I winced at the shrieking voice. I turned around and was met by a pair of brown eyes. The two year old child was standing with an aura that shouted arrogance. Her hair was a deep purple almost black color, which I liked; but my OCD tendencies were nagging at me to fix it or tell her to fix her hair. She had it asymmetrically cut to her left and it was getting on my nerves.

"Hey! Did you hear me?!" She asked rudely. I raised an eyebrow at her attitude.

"Do I know you?" I asked after I noticed her face turn into an irratated one.

"Hmph! I would think with that big head of yours you would remember at least that."...This child has problems.

'Inner what is she talking about?' Inner stayed quiet for a while which surprised me.

**"Uhm...yeah...Do you remember when dad mentioned he loved us the way we are?"** I thought back to this week.

'Inner...that happened three days ago and you conveniently forgot to tell me, huh?'

**"It's not that I forgot..."**

'It's more like you didn't want to tell me.' I realized that now. I looked back at the girl.

**"Yeah...Before you came, Sakura had a really low self-esteem, so she was easly picked on. The girl in front of you is Ami, one of her most persistent bullies."** I see, so that's how it is. I looked at the girl I know knew as Ami.

'Now that I look closely, I do remember her, but it was when she was older. I can't believe Sakura had to put up with her since she was two.' But this is where things change. I never experianced the actual bullying childhood; but I also didn't allow it. If I knew it was being done to someone, I would step up and talk to them; which is percisely what I was going to do here.

"Sorry. I remember you now. Your Ami." She hmphed and smirked as she stared directly at my forehead. What's her problem, its a forehead, Sakura eventually grows into it. Besides, now that I'm her, I don't really care what they say.

"That's right! You better remember it right away next time!" She reached out with her index finger and poked my forehead roughly.

"Big forehead girl!" She taunted, I smiled and moved her hand away with the back of my left hand.

"Please don't touch me." Her eyes widened but then she laughed.

"Oh? Since when do you tell me what to do?"

'The brat is testing my patience.' I irratatedly told Inner.

**"Don't you think you should act more like a child?"** She asked worriedly.

'There's no need to, since she actually speaks well, I'll give her that compliment but she has a nasty personality for a kid.'

"You need to stop being a bully." I told her frankly. She looked a bit mad at my comment.

"What did you say forehead girl!?" She screeched, making me wince at the loudness. I tired to concentrate on the small details of the girl. Trying to read her character like how Madoka taught me and from what I somewhat knew. She was thin and taller than me by a few centimeters. She was quick to temper but also to surprise. My guess is that she grew up feeling that taking her anger off on someone else helped her relieve her pain.

I suppose analyzing someone right now is still out of the question; for I found myself too concentrated and not paying her words any attention.

"You pink haired freak!" She reached out to pull at my hair but I grabed a hold of her hands. When our hands met, my concentration was pulled away from reality and into another image. This one felt like the last one, but didn't look like it had anything to do with me. I saw an image of a tall woman with black straight hair, she was holding onto a two year old. The same two year old in front of me. They stood in a hallway facing the back of a man. He was tall with dull purple hair and he appeared to have some sort of big bag. The image, which was for once clear, began to fade as she pulled her hand back roughly.

"Did you see that?" I asked, wondering if I was the only one to see it. It must be true, for she gave me a look as if I was crazy.

"What are you talking about?!" I looked down to my hands.

'Inner, these aren't just memories I'm recieving from Sakura's life before me. It seems that...we can see memories from others aswell.'

"Hey! Forehead girl you need to listen when I talk!" I looked at her.

"I knew there was a reason you acted this way...You bully others to hide the pain you feel inside, the pain from being left by your father." She looked shocked but of course she recovered and hid it behind anger.

"What the heck are you talking about!" She shouted angrily, but I could see her eyes glisten from unshed tears.

"You feel angry that he left you; and you feel sad because you think he didn't love you enough to stay...Thats what you feel right?" I asked and after a moment of silence, her head bent down and her face was covered by her bangs, I could see her shake in sadness. She may not like the fact but she's still just a child. I could see the clear transclucent tears drop to the ground.

"I thought he loved me...sniff...but he still left..." I waited for her to finish and pretended not to see or listen by turning to the left. I heard sobs and after a few good ten minutes it stopped and I could hear the fabric of her clothes used to brush away the tears.

"You didn't hear or see anything!" She said with that same rude attitude but with a much quieter tone to it. I smiled and looked at her.

"What did you say?" I asked and she stared at me for a long time. I was going to ask her if she had anything else to say, when she frowned and turned to leave without saying a word.

"Whats her problem?" I asked Inner, who only rolled her eyes.

**"If you don't know, don't ask."** I frowned at her evasiveness.

"Whatever." We walked back to our parents. The walk was silent as I tried to comprehend what happened a few moments ago.

**"Outer, about what happened before. Why do you think that's happening?"** She asked worriedly.

'I have a few theories, but...I just don't know exactly why.'

"Sakura are you ready to go?" Asked Kioshi, I nodded to his question. They stood and we began to head home. I looked down at my hand, should we test it? Should we leave it? Maybe it's nothing...I looked up to Madoka. I reached for her hand and she smiled at me as she picked me up into her arms. Well that didn't work...I hugged her around her neck and placed my hand onto her bare shoulder. I waited and nothing happened. I frowned a little at the failed results.

'Inner try to focus.' She nodded hesitantly and I closed my eyes as I focused on my hand on her shoulder. At first I thought nothing was going to happen but then my hand tingled and an image appeared.

The image was that of an old man, with blonde hair like Madoka's and was standing near a counter. He appeared to be baking something, and when I noticed the pastery, I noticed the place was the Haruno's Bakery. When I was going to look at it some more, trying to concentrate on the surroundings, I noticed the picture blur. It wasn't like the blurring it got when it's dissappearing, no, this one looked as if it was moving. Although it was very slow, the blurred parts increased in speed the more I concentrated on it. The images where becoming real moving memories like the one Inner showed me.

'Inner, who is that man?' I asked as the image was still there. It seems that as long as there is contact with my hands then I get the image. And we both have to be concentrated or else it won't work.

**"That's our granddad, we met him once before."**

'Where is he?' I asked as I watched the images start to move a bit faster.

**"He's our moms dad, you can see that he worked at the bakery too. He left to go back to his house in the land of water."** I nodded and concentrated on the image. It moved faster and now it was like a slow memory. I moved my hand away from her shoulder and the memory faded. It seems the more concentration I have, the better I will be able to see clearly.

**"So why do you think we see them?"** I leaned my head on her shoulder, feeling unusually tired.

'Maybe seeing memories exhaust us. But about why, I think it has more to do with you rather than with me.'

**"...What? Me?!"**

'Yeah, think about it. We always concentrate when we see the memories. Since I'm the outer, I have to make direct contact with someone while you transmit their memories to us. It's probably because you normally concentrate on not looking at my memories, so you accidently see others.'

**"That's right! Since I try not listen or see your memories or thoughts. I accedently use the other person as a means of replacing yours. "** I faintly nodded.

'I really do feel tired, but this was never this bad before.'

**"I think its because it wasn't our memories. I think if we see someone else's, it will put more stress on us."**

'Yeah, that sounds possible.'

The walk home was a bit boring, all I did was be carried off home by Madoka. The moment I was placed down, I went over to Kioshi.

"Daddy! You said you would tell me after we got back from the park!" I exclaimed as I grabbed onto his ninja pants. He patted my head and chuckled at my impatience.

"Alright, I'll tell you...What would you say if I told you we were going on a trip?" My eyes widened at his question. A trip? As in far away or close by? I tilted my head.

"Where daddy?" He picked me up and smiled.

"Well, to see your granddad in the land of water. Plus, we can go to other places, where ever you two want to go."

'Inner, this could help us greatly. We could leave and see other villages. I could learn the history of this world, get training, and so many more possablities.' Inner nodded excitedly.

**"Lets go! Lets go!"** She chanted in my head.

"Okay! That sounds fun daddy!"

"I'm glad your happy."

"Dear, when will we leave?" Madoka asked.

"By the end of this week, on Saturday. I've already spoken to the Hokage about our trip." She nodded and smiled with happiness.

"Daddy, when are we coming back?" I asked wanting to make sure it wasn't for a long time.

"Hmm, whenever you want; but I'm sure Haruki will want to keep you there for a long time." They both chuckled and I smiled brightly.

**"This is great! By the time we're back, we will be strong and ready to kick some ass!"**

'Calm down, I doubt we'll get that strong; But I am hoping to get better.' Kioshi put me down and kissed my forehead.

"Sakura, how about you go take a bath and then come down for dinner." I nodded and walked up stairs.

**~After Shower~**

I went back to the kitchen when I had finished and we all ate, while talking about the trip. We had decided to visit some nearby villages first and then go to Haruki's house. We would stay there for some time and then travel some more before coming back to Konoha. I'm still not sure whether this trip will take a long time; but I just hope that we will come back with a few pefected skills. Going to sleep that night was extremely hard, since I kept thinking about the trip. After I had finally fallen asleep, the night seemed to have passed by quickly, along with the rest of the week. By the time I knew it, my regular routine had been completed and it was Friday night.

'Inner, when we wake up tomorrow, we will be leaving Konoha.' I said as I layed in bed.

**"I know! I'm so excited! This will be the first time we go out of the village; and I don't know about you, but I'm ready to get out of the house!"** I smiled as I listened to Inner.

'Yeah...It's a bit nerve wrecking how things are moving so fast. I mean think about it, it's only been a week and two days since I was placed here; and things are already looking good for us.'

**"Yeah, At least we're getting things done. And being able to train all day with dad is exciting. Imagine all the things we'll learn! Hey, do you think we should act differently now?"** I thought about it for awhile.

'I think that we should show them our real side now. No more shy Sakura, and little by little we'll subtly show them how smart we really are.' Inner nodded enthusiastically.

'For now we should sleep. I think with all of these new developements, we deserve a good nights rest.' Inner nodded and we soon fell asleep with pleasant dreams of the soon to be new future.

* * *

**By the way, I forgot to mention this at the top; but I have decided to skip the time frame. Not to worry though, for I have read the comments of those of you who want me to skip only a little. I suppose it really won't be classified as skipping; since I will upload on Friday explaining what went on during that time. Also, I noticed some reviews mentioning Itachi and the massacre; and yes, they will meet as for the massacre, you'll just have to read and find out. If there is a character, besides the main ones that you want to see in the story, you can tell me and I will make sure they appear. **


	10. Chapter 10

**Authors Note:** Hello everyone! This chapter shall be the first one of the time skip chapters. Hopefully you like the way I'm doing them. I'm not sure if you've figured it out but the nine previous chapters have all been in the month of August. This chapter will begin with the last two remaining weeks of August. Also for the reviewer who was asking about Sakura's parents, they are OC's I created. I had explained in chapter two why I had done it that way; but I do hope you guys know that there will be more changes, this is Fanfiction after all.

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Better Days**

** Sakura's POV**

_**~August~**_

Our departure from Konoha went better than I had expected. Madoka and Kioshi had gotten up early and said their goodbyes to their friends, while I had slept. It seems that the people who knew me wanted to personally see me off on my first trip.

Marianne and Yashiro came to see me off along with Chouko. They all gave me something to remember them by, which I thought was silly since we weren't leaving permanently. But Inner said to just accept it politely, which I was going to do so anyways.

Yashiro gave me sweets. A bag filled with candy that he had made for my journey. That was very nice and I knew I would enjoy his gift. Marianne was next, she gave me a cute dress, that she had made. It was a dark blue dress with silver butterflies on it. She went on and on about how I would just love to travel. Her dark brown hair and cheerful personality reminded me a lot of one of my friends from my world, while her hazel eyes were just like my cousin's.

Chouko was last one and she indeed surprised me with her gift. Instead of a dress or shawl that I thought she would give me. She gave me lots of books and scrolls. The books were on the history of the villages and the scrolls were the forms of the traditional dances from the villages. I really liked the gift and I promptly ignored Inner's remark of me being a bookworm. I insisted on carrying my own gifts, so Kioshi made it easier by sealing them in a scroll so I could place them inside my bag.

After our hugs and farewells we began our journey to reach the land of water. Our first stop was to the Land of Valleys. Since Madoka and I were not as skilled as ninja's we had to walk for a long time. I didn't mind much since I enjoyed seeing the scenery.

It took us about a week to arrive at the Land of Valleys. This place wasn't that well known to me, since they didn't talk much about it in the anime/manga. The Land of Valley was a beautifull place. It was like its name suggested, filled with valleys. The landscape here was breath taking and sadely we didn't stay for long and started walking to the Land of Tea; which Madoka was very excited about.

The Land of Tea was a small country but also very beautiful and relaxful. My training with Kioshi had been picked up where we last left it; and I could now move my chakra a bit more comfortably. The Land of Tea was very famous for it's tea-houses; which we had stoped at for quite a number of times.

_**~September~**_

On the first week of September we had made it to the Land of Udon. We traveled by water to get there which was a fun experiance. The Land of Udon, famous for it's noodles was a small island but had it's own unique beauty to it. Madoka who was still teaching me about etiquette took the time to properly show me the correct way of eating noddles. It seems that on this trip she had taken it apon herself to teach me about eating correctly.

The second week, was spent by crossing the water by boat to get to the Land of Water. There really wasn't anything to do, so Madoka and Kioshi took this time to teach me. Madoka's lessons were the usual strict yet informative ones; while Kioshi's were proficient but tiring. I was still working on my chakra by the middle of the third week trying to familiarize myself with the other chakra producing organs.

On the last week of September we had finally arrived at the Land of Water. Kioshi had said that it would take another week to arrive at Haruki's house. So the last of the remaining week of September we spent walking. It was interesting to see so many places in this world that I once thought weren't real. But I must admit that it was pretty interesting to see new things.

Kioshi and Madoka, although subtle, were making us take longer routes than usual. My theory was that they didn't want me to see the state in which this country was in. I remember in the anime/manga when team seven went on the wave mission. The state in which that village was like made me very sad, and the feeling is worse now that this is my new world.

_**~October~**_

The first week of October was exciting. We had finally arrived at Haruki's house and I was flabbergasted. His house, which I thought was as normal as ours, was more of a traditional clan house. I figured he liked the traditional style over the modern one. We were welcomed inside by what looked like ninja's, my guess was that he had body gaurds. We were led inside the house, going through the nice long hallways untill we came to a stop. The guide opened the sliding door and motioned us inside. An elder man sat inside the room, and I knew he was Haruki from the memories I had seen before. At first glance the man looked strict and mean, but once he laid eyes on us, he grinned wide.

"Welcome Home! Oh Sakura! Come here, you've grown so much!" He stated happily. I could tell right away that Madoka and him were related without having been told. They had similar features and although his eye held some grey they were still blue like Madoka's. I walked out in front of Madoka and bowed.

"Hello granddaddy." He smiled and came over to me and hugged me.

"My sweet little Sakura! How have you been?"

"Great, grandaddy!" I said in his arms.

"You speak so well for a child your age. Has your mother been teaching you?" I nodded and smiled while he smiled at me and then at Kioshi and Madoka.

"Come, let me show you around Sakura!" We spent the whole afternoon having a tour of the place and talking about our travels so far. Dinner went by pleasantly. And during that time I found out that Haruki was skilled at not only baking, painting, but swordsmanship. He told me that he used to be a samurai. And when he asked me if I wanted to learn, I practically jumped at the chance.

The rest of the first and second week we spent alone. Haruki was attending a meeting, so we just had our regular trainings. We trained in the numerouse gardens that he had; and Inner and I made sure we remembered the whole layout of the house.

On the third week, Haruki returned. My first lessons with him went great. He taught me the history of samurais and weapons. He was very different from both my parents. He looked strict but when he spoke to family or friends he was probably the nicest and wisest guy I knew. When we were at the end of the week, I had finished learning about the weapons he was going to teach me to use.

In the last week of October I had finally completed the forms for the teaditonal dance of Konoha. Even though I could now complete all the forms in the correct sequence; I still lacked the elegance Chouko had. Chouko said that elegance would come to me from practice and the love of dancing, meaning I still had to practice a lot. Madoka had also told me that we were almost finished with her lessons, which I'm sure she means just the eating part. Kioshi and Haruki's lessons were the only ones I still felt completly new at.

_**~November~**_

The month of November in the Land of Water got really cold; and Madoka said that it would get colder. On the first week, Inner and I started to practice the forms ontraditional dances used in Water. We also got to practice with the basic weapons Haruki had provided. He was teaching me how to wield Katanas, Tantos, spears, how to use two handed swords and many more. With Kioshi, my concentration on my chakra was getting better at finding it much easier; however I would still get too concentrated and forget about my surroundings.

The second week was fun for both Inner and me. We went to a festival, which was the first one I had been to in this world. Inner and I were very excited. Haruki had given me a kimono to wear, which I just adored. It was a deep purple color with white petals scattered on it. The obi was a light pink color and tied in an elegant bow behind me, courtesy of Madoka. When we had arrived at the festival my eyes took in all the beautiful decorations. We played many games on the stands and ate delicious food. After having so much fun all day, we watched a display of fireworks that were very beautiful.

On the third week not much happened. There was a ton of training and new lessons from Madoka. She was teaching me all about Kimonos now. I had always wanted to learn more about them in my other life and now was an opportune time to learn.

Inner and I felt very accomplished on the last week. We could finally get a bit of my chakra out of a tenketsu. Although it was a very small amount, everyone was proud of me. Kioshi even said that I could start placing some of my chakra in my weights.

_**~December~**_

Madoka had been very right about it getting colder. The weather was so cold that if we didn't need to go outside we wouldn't. Inner and I both wanted to see the snow here in Water, because Haruki was telling us how beautiful it got.

On the second week I found out that Kioshi was starting to take my training seriously. He made me practice outside...in the cold, and it had finally snowed too. He said it was to help me endure any climate. And he said that we would be travelling to the Land of Wind so I could practice in the heat. He was so serious he took me with him on his trips to the market. It was so cold and I was wearing think cloths plus a small warm blanket. Kioshi made carry some supplies while he carried and bought other things.

**"Outer...do you think Suna's as bad as everyone says?"** I thought about it as I looked around waiting for Kioshi.

'I'm sure it is. I mean it is a desert where it gets really hot in the day time and freezing cold at night.' I said while looking around. The market place was big and the roads covered in snow. I continued to look when I stopped on a protruding...foot? It was the corner of a building, boxes where laid out all around the ground. A foot could be seen sticking out behind the boxes. I turned my head to the right, Kioshi was still looking for the right stuff Madoka asked him to get. Seems like he'll be here for awhile.

I quickly walked off to the other side of the street. It wasn't that far and I just needed to make sure no one had fainted or something in this weather.

**"Why would any sane person faint or worse sleep in the snow?!"** I ignored Inner in favor of concentrating on where my foot stepped. I neared the boxes and grabed a hold of them for support. I peeked around them and froze...a child was laying on the ground hugging himself, clearly freezing.

'Oh my god!' I moved closer to the child and completly froze but for a completly different reason than before.

'Inner! This child is Haku!' Inner's eyes almost popped out.

**"What?! That cute, dangerous boy from that mission in the future?!"** I nodded rapidly and gulped.

**"What should we do?"**

'Uhm, he doesn't look that much older than me...he's about six years old.' I quickly looked over to Kioshi. He was still looking for the things on the list and apparently hadn't noticed me leave yet. I turned my attention back to Haku.

'Around this time Zabuza finds him. I think we should let things play as they did, only so they can meet. Their deaths were avoidable but their meeting inevitable.' Inner nodded and I quickly started to take the blanket off of me.

**"What the heck are you doing, it's cold?!"**

'Exactly, and he needs it more than we do.' I gently, trying not to wake him, placed the blanket on him. His shivering stopped and I sighed out in relief. I looked inside the bag I was carrying and took out some wrapped bread and placed it inbetween his arms. I was so glad he was not yet an experianced ninja, he would have definitely woken up by now. I backed away slowly and quietly. When I saw his eyelashes flutter, I froze; but then mentally kicked myself and ran, not turning around to see if he saw me or not. The rest of the day went uneventful, except for the part where Inner and I saw Kioshi get scolded by Madoka for forgetting the bread.

The third week of December was challenging. Since I could now produce a small amount of chakra and place it in my weights. I had become more strict on myself, and put more weight on them. I'm sure if Kioshi or the others knew how much weight I had on my limbs they would freak, so I kept them hidden under gloves. The weight was really tiring but I pushed myself to train.

The last week after many hours of practice, Inner and I discovered that if she were to unblock my thoughts at the same time that I touched someone, we could communicate telepathically. We found out by testing it on a young child telling him it was magic. Since he was young he easyly believed the white lie. We had been training that skill since we learned we had it, but so far we still didn't know much. This was our first real succesful achievement on that ability.

_**~January~**_

The first week was hectic; because we were preparing the house for a family dinner party. This would be the first time I would meet the whole family on Madoka's side of the family. The dinner was at the end of the week and would start three days later, in order to let everyone have time to arrive. I was in charge of greeting the relatives and escorting them to their rooms. They were all very nice people and I could tell which ones were related by their features.

The second week commenced the party. Everyone had arrived and had gotten situated. It was mostly comprised by adults with a few children and teenagers. The kids I had met had all completly decided to stay as civilians except for three of them and the younger ones who couldn't decide yet. The ones who wanted to be ninjas were still a little young to officailly learn but a little older than me.

The dinner party was fun and I made friends with the children's and adults. They left on the third week and my routine went back to normal. I finished my basic katas and Kioshi said for me to keep practicing until they flowed without even thinking. The last week I finished half of the water dance forms, and it was my favorite as of now. The moves were slow but powerful and Madoka said it was the most elegant dance out of all of them.

_**~February~**_

The weather on the first week was going back to a comfortable level. I could now walk outside in the chilly wind a bit more comfortably. My busy schedule which consisted of waking up, morning exercise, eat breakfast, etiquette lessons, training with Haruki, eat lunch, practice new ability, read, eat dinner and then sleep. Was leaving me exhausted day after day with this body.

On the second week of Febuary I had fainted. Turns out that if Inner and I use our secret skill for longer than one hour we can't handle the memory over-Load. We made everyone worried and they said I slept for three days. Inner and I decided that we would practice that skill only until we felt that dizzy feeling, and little by little we'll be able to go on longer. What was left of the third week was left recovering. Everyone said I would have to take it easy, so they made one day of the week a rest day.

The last week of febuary was easy. My training was to practice all the basics, since I was recovering. I felt better than before, but they were still worried I would push myself again. Most of the time I could only have etiquette lessons or bake with Haruki and Madoka. Nevertheless that experiance was an enjoyable one.

_**~March~**_

My birthday was coming up soon and we were getting ready to have a nice small dinner party with just the four of us. The whole first week was spent cleaning the house; while the second one was used to find something for me to wear. Inner was very excited for our birthday, Although she was still a little sad about being away from her Sasuke-kun. She calmed down once our birthday came up.

I was awoken with exclamations of happy birthday and hugs from everyone, even the gaurds. The day was simple and nice. We spent the whole day together it was a nice change from all the training. I received gifts from them and placed them in our room to open later. Dinner was amazing, they had the long mohagony wood table decorated with beautiful flowers of all types. There was also a lot of my favorite foods. Inner was probably drooling inside my head. After dinner, there was dessert. Madoka and Haruki both helped make things. Since they knew I loved any type of pastery they made many different things. I was presented with a cake and told to blow the candles. Inner and I both agreed on our wish. We decided to wish for a better future. When we were eating the cake I finally realized that we were officially three years old.

'Inner can you believe its been eight months since I came here?'

**"Its amazing how time flies by. How much longer do you think we will be here?"**

'Probably not that much longer. We do have to go to Suna and some other places.' The time really did go by fast. Once done with desert I was allowed to go and see my presents. I went to my own personal room here in Haruki's house and slid the door open. Inner and I decided to open Madoka's present first. She had gotten me a book containing information on tea leaves and other herbs that were edible. I was happy with the book, because it would help me take my first step into medical ninjutsu. Madoka had also gotten us some cloths that were only found here in water. They looked elegant and comfortable, and I was sure to use them later on.

Kioshi's was next, his present was a bit heavier.

**"Open it! Open it!"** Inner was very excited. Since we opened the first one, she had started to try and guess what the others would be.

**"I bet he got us ninja stuff!**" I smiled and rolled my eyes.

"Maybe, but just because he's teaching us how to be ninja's; doesn't mean he will get us ninja stuff." I opened the gift and was surprised to see a whole ninja set of kunai, shurikin, ninja wire, and explosive tags. It had its holster there in black with the white haruno symbol. There was also a letter attatched to it.

**"Ha! I told you so!"** I rolled my eyes at Inner's childish antics

"Whatever." I mumbled as I read through the letter.

_To my lovely flower,_

_Happy birthday Sakura! Today you turn three years old. You are starting to see what path you want to take in such a young age. We are all very impressed and proud that you wish to follow our footsteps, as you have probably noticed only a few ever want to. Sakura do whatever you want to with your gift because remember Sakura only you can decide what path you want. I wish you the best of luck on whatever you decided and know that we will always love and support you._

_Love Kioshi_

As much as I wanted to tear up and cry, Inner was already crying and wailing enough for the both of us. So I settled on a smile and a heart filled with joy.

Haruki's present was really going to be a surprise. I have no idea what he could have gotten me. When I opened the gift, I laid my eyes on a scroll. It was a deep burgendy red and the haruno symbol on it. He attatched a note to the scroll as well.

_Dear Sakura,_

_You are growing up so fast, I still remember when you were born. You were and are small and already have such big goals. My present to you is not to be opened unless you are in a life or death situation. You can seal or reseal the item any time; but it shouldn't be used for unimportant situations. You are a bright girl Sakura, and I know you will be able to handle anything. I will give you my love and support always._

_Love Haruki_

If Inner was crying before, she was bawling now. She couldn't even make one coherent word.

**"That was so nice!...sniff..."** I chuckled at her tear stricken face. I picked up the wrappings to throw away when I noticed a small box.

"What's this?" I asked, trying to figure out who could have gotten me another present.

**"Don't know, open it and find out."** I did as she suggested and opened the lid of the box. Inside was a beautiful silver chain, with four tear drop crystal. They probably weren't as expensive as the one Tsunade had that could buy mountains but they still looked expensive. The many facets on the crystal glimmered when the sun hit them. They really were beautiful and I would always treasure them.

One was a clear white color which reminded me of Haruki's pure, kind personality. The next crystal was red, which most likely was picked by Madoka, since it was her favorite color. Then there was a viridian green, the shades that reminded me of Kioshi's eye color, which were a shade darker than mine. It was a beautiful gift that I knew without a doubt I would always wear. I gently placed it around my neck.

**"This was by far my favorite!" **

"We should add one of our own whenever we can." Inner nodded in agreement.

**"This day was great!"** Inner squealed happily as I turned around quickly to head back and thank everyone for their gifts. The days would surely only get better.

* * *

**How was the time skip chapter? Did you like it? I hope so, there will only be one more time skip chapter like this to cover the next year. After that, Sakura will return to Konoha so keep reading and thank you for the positive reviews!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Authors Note:** Last chapter in the time skip frame, and it's cut short about three months but if you read you'll see why. It's pretty long so I hope you enjoy!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot. **

* * *

** Guilt**

** Sakura's POV**

**_~April~_**

Training outside for the last part of March and the beginning of April was tranquil. Soon after my birthday, the Cherry Blossom trees bloomed. The beautiful petals on the flowers bloomed recently to their fullest. Madoka took a break from etiquette lessons to teach me what she knew on the Cherry Blossoms. Learning about my namesake was interesting, I had know idea there was so many different varieties of them. Haruki had a few different types here in his home, but Madoka said that some bloom in different times. The training with Kioshi had moved into the stage where I practiced my katas on him. Of course I didn't ever win, but he was very helpful. Haruki's lessons where similar, I would practice with him what I had learned.

It was around the second week when we went to our second festival. It was for the Cherry Blossoms. I had received another kimono from Haruki. He gave me a light pink kimono with bright pink Sakura's blooming. The obi tied in a bow behind me was white and my hair that had grown slightly past my shoulders, was put up into a bun with Sakura accessories. All in all I was covered in pink almost everywhere. We had a good time at the festival as we enjoyed each others company along with all the other relatives who had come.

_**~May~**_

On the first week of may, Inner and I had finally achieved a whole hour of seeing someone's memories. We accomplished it by practicing with a younger cousin of ours. He had come to visit after the flower viewing festival and after we had played, he took a nap. I was only going to see if it worked when someone was asleep. Turns out that as long as Inner and I are awake, we can still see them. We skimmed through his memories of three years in a whole hour. We didn't see major things just small things, like him playing. We figured we could also last an hour in speaking with someone telepathically, but we didn't want to try both of them at the same time. It would probably cause us to faint again.

We also learned that using that ability caused us to get exhausted quickly, so we kept practicing. Our training was getting better, though we were still lacking in the endurance department. Training with chakra was still the same, except I could now release chakra out of five Tenketsu and I still had 356 to go.

Haruki was allowing me to mix the weapons into katas that he was going to show me. So now I had more katas to learn, which were pilling up. The forms for the water dance where completed and now I would start the wind forms. So my body would still remember the other forms, I would practice the whole dance for fire and water before going into the wind dance every lesson.

_** ~June~**_

I was told on the first week that this month was to be my last here in the Land of Water. I spent this whole month mostly with Haruki. We would practice early and sometimes when he was busy in the morning, we would practice till late at night. In order to keep in touch with each other he gave me a messenger bird. The bird which was apparently one of many he had, was a majestic looking bird. He was a big bird that was probably a foot and a half. His pretty feathers that glistened in the sun where a mahogany color with a few black spots. And just like Haruki he looked mean but wild, but when he was held by Haruki he turned into a complete domestic bird. I was trained how to take care of him and quickly he and I became friends.

On the second week, Haruki and I had trained most of the time, since I would soon leave. The last two weeks passed by a bit faster than I wanted them to. I really liked living with Haruki here, it was peaceful and it almost felt as if it was a completely different world entirely. Our last day was bittersweet, we had decided that we wouldn't train at all and just spend the day together. We walked around the village and took hikes in the near mountain parks. We even went fishing even though I didn't really like fishing because of the waiting; but it was actually fun with Haruki.

We were heading home, both noticing the sky turn into a darker blue, and stars beginning to twinkle in the sky. We spent the late afternoon sitting outside, on a hallway that went all around the outside of his house. We drank tea as we listened to the wind rustle the leaves gently. The bright full moon was casted over head and illuminated his garden beautifully, the only light besides the lanterns decorating the garden and all around us. There was a comfortable silence until Haruki spoke up.

"I'm going to miss you Sakura." He said quietly as he looked at the moon, I looked at him and then smiled sadly.

"Me too, but you and I could always visit each other!" I said, trying to make this night less sad.

"That's right, plus you can send me a letter any time." I smiled brightly up at him.

"That's right! So you better be prepared to read lots of letters, Ok granddaddy?!" He chuckled and nodded as he ruffled my hair and I laughed with him. A lady who helped with the house chores came up to us carrying something. She handed it to Haruki who thanked and dismissed her. We were soon alone again and he turned towards me.

"Sakura, this scroll contains weapons and other materials you will need to continue our lessons. There is still so much more I wish to teach you my little Sakura, but we always have time for that later." He handed the scroll to me. It was different than the last one, this one was a dark green.

"Thanks Granddaddy!" He smiled.

'Inner, should we ask him about the scroll he gave us on our birthday?' Inner tapped her chin in thought.

**"Hmm, I think we should."** I looked at him as he drank his tea. I breathed in deeply.

"Hey granddaddy..." He looked down at me.

"Yes Sakura?" I chewed my lip. How was I supposed to ask? Did he think I knew what to do with it?

"Uhm...about the scroll you gave me before...can you tell me about it?" I waited for his response hopping he would be like Kioshi and answer my questions.

"I can tell you only a bit. You have to be the one to find out the rest. That scroll has been passed down through our family for generations. It is to be given to every first born." I stayed silent as I listened carefully.

"You are a bright child Sakura. Have you ever noticed how people, mostly ninja don't know much about our clan, and think we're civilian?" I nodded, that was also what I always thought when I watched the anime/manga.

"Before my time, our family was known by a different name, that is why people don't remember. Now, most of the members of this family are civilian, and it's better that way. Being a samurai or a shinobi is a dangerous thing; but it's also the most helpful. Sakura, when you open the scroll it will only be for a desperate situation."

"Uhm...what happens if I open it when it's not?" I waited for him to finish his tea and then look at me.

"Nothing bad will happen...it's just preferable for when you really need to. And a bit of advice stay calm and be persistent when you do open it." I blinked owlishly up at him.

**"What the heck does that mean!"** Shouted Inner incredulously, I shook my head slightly, not knowing how to answer.

"But wait granddaddy, you said it was passed down to every first born, but why do I have it right now? I mean shouldn't someone older have it? Like you or mommy?"

"Well, It was mine and I suppose part of it still is..." I raised an eyebrow at his confusing words.

"Anyways, your mother wasn't the first born. You have an uncle who was the first born, but he didn't want to be a shinobi. Sakura, since you are the first born after your uncle and want to be a shinobi, that puts you next in line." I nodded finally understanding.

"I get it." The night sky was pitch black, allowing the stars to shine brightly. The wind that was getting chilly picked up and it blew out the lights from within the lanterns. The darkness quickly surrounded us but there was still enough light from the moon to shine upon us. I looked down at my necklace which was reflecting the light. The facets on the crystals glimmered brightly like stars above.

_**~July~**_

The morning arrived fast and we were outside ready to leave the Land of Water. We said our farewells to Haruki as well as the guards and helpers of the house. We began our long walk to a boat, which would take us over to the Land of Snow.

The week of traveling by boat, Kioshi and Madoka spent the time teaching me about the Land of Snow. When we had arrived I noticed that not everything was incased in snow and ice. It wouldn't take long though before the current Daimyo gets killed and a tyrant takes over. Before I know it, we will be coming here for a mission. The Land of Snow was a beautiful place but it was extremely cold. Worst part was, Kioshi wanted me to train outside. I knew that after this, I would be fine in almost any weather, though Inner was nervous about Suna.

We spent a week in the Land of Snow before we continued our journey to the next place. Our next trip took two weeks to get to, because we skipped a couple of islands. We came to the Land of the Moon. It was a beautiful Island, we enjoyed our stay here and we were able to see many things that weren't really common to us. We stayed for two weeks, and trained and traveled through the island.

_**~August~**_

After leaving the Island we headed towards the Land of Honey. I knew without a doubt Madoka and I would enjoy this country. It was famous for it's sweet after all, and Inner and I were ready to eat some sweets. unfortunately it took a week to arrive but when we did, we were immediately surprised. The country was lively and colorful. There were vendors of candy stands almost everywhere. Madoka was having a blast as she learned from professionals on how to make the sweets; and I was having fun eating them. Kioshi liked sweets but he didn't have such a big sweet tooth like Madoka and I. We left on the second week, which made Madoka and I very depressed.

But I was also depressed for a different reason. My real birthday was almost coming up and I felt lonely without my family in the other world.

**"It'll be okay!"** reassured Inner, I smiled at her attempts at encouraging me.

'Thanks. It's just sad to think about it.' Inner frowned.

**"What did I say about keeping things bottled up? Do you need to talk about it?"** She asked sincerely at the end.

'No thanks, it's not that bad.' Inner continued to frown but nodded anyways.

On the third week we had finally arrived at the beginning of the desert. I knew the heat would be awful once we stepped out of the forest and into the desert. I was grateful that we had changed clothing to suit the desert and restocked our supply of water and food. I took a deep breath and followed after Kioshi and Madoka.

**"It. Is. Hot!"** I winced as Inner shrieked in my head.

'It hasn't even been an hour.' Inner shrieked again.

**"I think I'm going to go crazy!"** I rolled my eyes as I wiped my forehead with my sleeve and trudged on.

'Yeah,_ your_ going to go crazy...' The scorching heat was immense. No wonder they always said the journey through the desert was unbearable. I had never crossed such a hot desert before, and if I did it certainly wasn't as long as two days and without the right equipment. The nights were just as bad, they went from scorching days to freezing nights. I was extremely grateful that Kioshi had come prepared.

When we had reached the sand wall of Suna, Inner was practically overjoyed. I, on the other hand, only wanted to take a shower and then sleep. I had sand everywhere, in my shoes, in my clothes, even in my hair, I was ready to learn from Kioshi how he seemed to stay relatively clean. We showed our traveling papers to the guards and fortunately we were let in without a problem.

We were escorted in through the long road in-between the walls. The shadows provided a nice change in temperature. Once out, we saw the village. I actually thought the sand village was very beautiful, even with the heat. We could somehow manage to get used to it. We were escorted by the sand ninja to a hotel where we could stay and as we walked the village, I noticed the food stands, the children playing and many other things. I couldn't wait to tour the place.

We had checked into the hotel the ninja took us to and it was heaven to Inner. Once inside the building, there was a nice cool temperature. It wasn't that much colder it just felt better than the desert. We went into our room, it had two beds and a bathroom. There was also a window which over saw the village. The interior was nice and comfortable, It had warm colors and really gave a tourist the Suna style.

After a much needed shower, it was too late to go outside and sight see, so we went to bed early.

_**~September~**_

It was early morning on the first week of September, and we were taking our first tour of Suna. I had surprisingly woken up earlier than both Kioshi and Madoka so I went ahead and got ready for the day. I changed into a plain tan dress that reached my knees and a cute poncho that was a shade darker and had zigzag patterns on it. I decided to make a simple braid with my hair so my bangs could get out of my face. When I walked out they were already awake.

"Sakura, you look so cute! How did you learn to do that?" Madoka exclaimed as she looked at me.

"Thanks mommy! Uhm...I saw a girl with this hairstyle and wanted to try it...Are we going out?" She nodded.

"Once we get ready, we'll all go out." I nodded and waited for them to get ready downstairs in the lobby. Looking outside the window I saw how the streets where active so early. It didn't take them long to join me down stairs and soon we stepped out into the busy streets of Suna.

It was fun to look around and see all the different stalls. The villagers where nice people and I knew we would have a good time here. We ate breakfast at a small restaurant, which served really good food. Out of all the places we travelled to, inner and I had yet to decide which we liked best.

After breakfast we went into some stores to buy what we would need in our stay.

"Hey daddy, how long are we going to stay here in Suna?" He looked down at me.

"We have friends that live here, so we're planning to stay for awhile. Why, you don't like it here?" I shook my head rapidly.

"No daddy! This place is great!" He smiled and we continued to pick out clothes that would fit the environment. When we finished shopping for our things, we walked back to our hotel room.

"Ne, Sakura how about we go to a park and train there?" I nodded at Kioshi's suggestion.

When we put away all our things, we left the hotel again. Madoka said she would try and find the friends they were talking about while Kioshi and I trained. The park was small but big enough for kids to play, and adults to walk around. luckily we were alone so it would make things much easier.

Kioshi and I practiced for two hours on my katas and he helped me for one hour on my stances that incorporated my weapons. It was barely midday when we stopped and Kioshi said he wanted to see if Madoka had found their friends. I asked if I could stay and work on my endurance training and he surprised me by agreeing.

This was the first time I was allowed to train on my own outside of the house; and that was a great sign, it meant that when we got back, he would most likely let me wonder around on my own. Inner and I worked on our concentration skills. If we concentrated hard enough we could barely feel a small amount of chakra from other people. When little kids who were younger than us, came to play in the park; we would try our memory ability. The sun was starting to go down so I made my way back to the hotel.

My routine for the next two weeks were starting to get comfortable. The heat was fine, except for when Kioshi made us do exercises outside in the heat. Madoka was finishing her lessons on teaching me how to read people. I had also met their friends, they didn't have children but we still became friends.

The last week was interesting. I was now, in Kioshi's words "Ready to explore on my own." When I asked why he thought that, he answered by saying that I was smart and could defend myself. But I had a feeling that if I was in trouble he would know.

So here we were, Inner and I exploring Suna. We decided that just for today, we would skip training, besides our weights were enough of training. The weights were becoming increasingly harder to train with; but we always managed to push ourselves harder.

We first walked through the places we've been to. Then we started exploring some places we hadn't gone to before. Inner and I found a couple of parks that varied in size and play things. We also found out that although it was in the middle of the desert there was still things such as flowers and other plants that were beautiful.

The book Madoka had gotten me for my birthday came in handy, I had almost finished reading it and with Inner's help we had already found some herbs in the forest. I knew it was hard for them to grow herbs here with this weather but I also knew they specialized in poisons. Madoka was impressed with my findings so I knew she was picking up on my subtle acts of interest in the subject.

It was getting late and the only rule was to get back before it go to late. The rest of the week went by relatively normal, the only thing that changed was having to do a ton more of endurance exercises and getting half way in my new dance forms.

_** ~October~**_

On the first week of October I was surprised. Madoka and Kioshi were invited over to spend some time with their friends. I was given the choice whether to go with them or go around Suna, I picked the latter of the two.

'Inner, do you think we should go into the main part of Suna?'

**"Yeah I think that's a good idea!"** I nodded and I began walking into the main part of the village. The streets were crowded and it was hard to get through the people on the streets. After a good five minutes of squishing myself through the crowd, I was able to get on a path that was less crowded. I looked behind me and sighed, I ran farther ahead to get away the crowd.

**"Augh! My arms and legs are hurting!"** shouted Inner referring to the weights. Although our speed must be good from all the weight, our endurance was not as good. So the running helped give us get more training in.

We rounded a corner of a street when we ran right into someone. The person stayed standing while I didn't get so lucky and had fallen on my butt. I winced at the painful impact and looked up to apologize. I stopped before I could say anything as I stared at the person in front of me.

**"Holy crap Outer! That's Chiyo!"** Inner's shouting broke my trance like state and I shook my head before getting up. I dusted my self of the dirt that had gotten on my dress.

"I'm sorry for bumping into you..." I looked up towards a much younger version of the Chiyo I remembered. She looked a bit unhappy so this must already be when Sasori left Suna. She didn't really say anything and started walking away. I frowned, I knew she was unhappy and thought the younger generations should look after themselves but that's just mean and rude. I followed her and walked along side her.

**"What are you doing?"**

'I'm using our childish nature to somehow get her to open up. I mean she cared for Sakura when she got older, why not start early?' I continued to walk along side Chiyo and with Madoka's lessons, I could tell she was irritated.

"What do you want kid?" She finally asked me, hmm I figured she would have lasted a lot longer.

"Why are you unhappy?" I asked while tilting my head. She stared at me for awhile before narrowing her eyes. Seems like she's suspicious.

"How old are you kid?" I frowned.

"What does that have to do with you being unhappy?" She shook her head.

"never mind. Go to wherever your parents are." She continued to walk and I sighed and followed her. Sorry Chiyo, but the first step to recovering is admitting something is wrong.

"Ne, are you a shinobi?" She side glanced at me and I thought she wasn't going to answer me.

"Why do you ask?" I smiled brightly.

'Gotcha.'

"You have ninja weapons." She looked over to me curiously but continued walking on.

"I bet your an amazing kunoichi." She raised an eyebrow, I suppose that meant for me to enlighten her with my reasoning.

"Your an elder shinobi, meaning you've seen many battles." She nodded

"That is correct." It was silent as we walked and I was having a hard time thinking of what to say. I couldn't really ask if she had children, because that would just make her sad.

"Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"I have one younger brother." I was actually surprised she was answering, let alone telling me about herself.

"Your lucky, I don't have any." I looked up and noticed the sun starting to go down.

"Well, I have to go. It was fun talking to you, maybe we can talk again sometime." She didn't say anything but at least she stopped to listen. As I was walking away, I stopped and turned.

"And by the way, I'm three years old!" I told her before running off back to the hotel.

The next three weeks were not as good as the first. I had tried on multiple occasions to look for Chiyo again, but I could never find her. My training was getting a lot better, I could now release chakra out of 100 of my tenketsu. It wasn't powerful just barely releasing it. We would also go up to 150 on my exercises. Kioshi said my training with weapons was really good, so I was very proud of my accomplishments. And I had sent my first letter to Haruki, so I was waiting patiently for a reply.

_**~November~**_

I saw Chiyo again on the first week of November. I was with Kioshi and Madoka and we were walking around the village markets when I spotted her. This time she was with her brother...Ebizō I think was his name. They were just walking around, they didn't really seem like they were enjoying their walk. When we passed by them I made it clear that I was smiling and waving at her. She obviously didn't say or do anything but at least she looked at me. When we were farther away, I turned back and saw when Ebizō leaned in and ask something. Most likely, he was asking who I was. And as predicted, Chiyo only shook her head, and I couldn't really tell what they were saying.

The second week, Inner and I were determined to find Chiyo. We looked everywhere but we couldn't find a trace of that woman or her brother. We looked for her in the outskirts of the village to the center and yet we couldn't find her. We were heading back to the hotel, finally calling it a day from all the pointless running. Although it did help with training but our main objective was not completed.

'We might as well run all the way there.' I said as I began to jog to the hotel. I'm glad I chose to wear comfortable clothes instead of dresses today. My black sweat-pants and loose red tee-shirt were comfortable when I ran through the village.

**"Augh! Why run more?! Can't we just take a break from all the running?!"** Screamed Inner as she dramatically wiped the sweat of her forehead. I was rounding a corner when I suddenly sensed something incoming. But considering my mind and senses were much better than my tiny three year old body reflexes...I couldn't dodge it. Whatever it was slammed right into my face making it hurt a lot.

**"What the hell! That freaken hurt!"** It rolled down my stinging face and I caught it before it fell. I looked at my hands and noticed it was a ball plus some sand falling though my fingers. I looked up as I rubbed my face and noticed a group of kids. I raised an eyebrow, they were unnaturally quiet for a bunch of kids. Then I noticed off to the side a kid that was much smaller than the rest. My eyes widened a fraction, that was unmistakably Gaara!

**"Kyaaa! He's so cute!"** I winced as Inner started running around my head while squealing.

"Uhm...here's your ball." I said as I outstretched my hands. The kids looked between me and Gaara and then they just left...without saying anything and without taking their ball. What was I supposed to do with it?

**"Kya! Quick, play with Gaara!"** I tilted my head at Inner's instructions. I began to walk over to Gaara, stopping until I was about five feet away. I took this time to observe him, he was really small; but I knew he was my age. He still didn't have the Kanji for love on his forehead, so this was before he became insane. I could see him tremble and try to make himself as small as possible, his little hands held on tightly to the bear in his arms.

"Poor bear, you'll hurt him if you squeeze that hard." He opened his eyes widely and loosened his grip on the toy. His beautiful jade eyes looked uncertainly up at me. That made me sad, that a child has to feel so guarded with everyone.

'What to do in this sort of situation?'

**"How about just being nice? Besides, your good at that."** I mentally sighed at Inner's amazingly helpful words.

"Ne, what should I do with this ball?" I asked as I outstretched my hands. He flinched back a little and I just hopped he had the tailed beast a little under control.

"I don't know anyone here, because I'm visiting Suna, so I don't know what to do with it." His eyes widened slightly at the mention of me being new. His whole being somehow relaxed. I felt so sad that he would rather be with a stranger than his own villagers. Although they were to blame for causing such a young child such hardships.

"Should I leave it here? Do you think they'll come back to get it? Should we just play with it?" I asked nicely but he seemed to be watching me for any lies.

"Why aren't you scared?" He asked very quietly, I tilted my head.

"Why should I be?" His eye's widened.

"I...hurt you..." I blinked down at him. So it was him who had made his sand move the ball.

"Oh...it was just an accident, besides I'm alright." He still seemed a bit uncertain. I looked up at the sky noticing it getting darker. I walked over towards the center where the kids used to be. I left the ball on the ground and then turned back to face the sad face of Gaara...He must have thought I was leaving.

"Ne, if you come to this park tomorrow at twelve, we can play." His eyes widened in surprise. I started to walk towards the hotel, but was stopped by Gaara's timid yet happy voice.

"Okay!" I smiled and waved bye, before running off to the hotel, trying to beat the sun from going completely down. If not...I would be in a whole lot of trouble.

The next day came quick and I was excited to go meet Gaara. I left after breakfast telling Madoka and Kioshi I would come back later to train after meeting a friend. They had been happy that I had been able to make a friend and allowed me to go, plus they gave me money for snacks. I decided to go in something comfortable. So I wore tan sweat pants, with a white loose tee-shirt, with my bangs into a braid and out of my face.

I ran all the way to the park from yesterday, hopping he would actually be there. When I arrived, I looked around and spotted him on a swing set.

"Hey!" I yelled with my childish high pitched voice. He spotted me running towards him, and I could see the happiness he was trying to hide.

"I'm glad you came. So, what do you want to do?" He was very quiet, I don't think anyone could ever make him a chatterbox. He shook his head.

"I don't know...I've never played with anyone before..." I frowned disbelievingly at him like any child would do.

"Never played?!" He looked down at his lap sadly. Hmm, I needed to pick a game that would be good for him and one that every child needs to experience.

"How about hide and seek?" He looked up and blinked at me.

"You don't want to?"

"No!...I mean...I want to play." I smiled at him.

"Alright. Do you want to hide or seek?" He shook his head.

"I don't know."

"Then you can seek and I'll hide, because I'm a horrible seeker. All you have to do is find me, ok?" He nodded.

"Ok. So close your eyes and count to twenty, then you can find me. Lets just stay in this park so it will be easier." He nodded and closed his eyes. He counted very quietly that he just mumbled them. I smiled and then looked around, I spotted a barrel and decided that was the best at the moment. I ran over and hid behind it, glad I was short enough to fit. I closed my eyes and concentrated on the sounds around me. Since we were alone, there weren't any other footsteps besides his.

His footsteps where getting closer and I knew he would easily find me. It was a known fact that the tailed beast enhanced the body of the one containing them. So there was no doubt that he didn't hear me, or sense me come over here. And as if proving my point he appeared around the barrel right when I opened my eyes. He looked down at me with an expression that tugged at my heartstrings.

"Aww! You found me!" I stood up and he allowed me room to move out.

"Your good at this." He smiled a small smile and looked down. He most likely didn't get compliments a lot.

"Do you want to try and hide?" He looked up and nodded. I ran over to the swing he was on earlier. I counted to twenty out loud but concentrated on the things around me. His chakra was big enough for me too sense and I was actually amazed he was somewhat controlling all that power.

"Ready or not here I come!" I said and got up. I remember playing this with my sister and some other kids. The little ones would always giggle when I failed to find them and state it dramatically. I wonder if he would be the same? I purposefully tried many times to look for Gaara in places I knew he wasn't in; and I would exclaimed loudly how I thought that place was _the_ one. I didn't hear him laugh but that was to be expected. After three minutes of searching, I went over to his hiding spot, that was under the slide.

"Okay, this time I know your definitely here." I peeked behind the slide.

"I found you!" He looked up at me and I froze. Instead of him laughing he was crying!

"Ne, what's wrong? Are you not feeling well?" He hid his face on his folded arms that were resting on top of his knees.

"Why...sniff...are you being so nice to me?" He said in-between sobs. I took a deep breath.

"What's wrong with being nice?" He stopped sobbing but didn't look up.

"Everyone else isn't nice to me..." I tilted my head and sighed. I decided to change the subject.

"Ne, what's your name?" He looked up and wiped the tears from his face with his sleeves.

"Gaara." I smiled and nodded.

"Well it's nice to meet you Gaara-san. My name is Sakura Haruno." He nodded and got out of his hiding spot.

"Ne Gaara-san, I might not always be able to see you every day but I promise to play with you again." He nodded slowly probably sad to know that piece of information. We played hide and seek for an hour or so before we each went our separate ways.

'Today was very successful.' Inner nodded.

**"Yeah, I'm glad he's slowly opening up to us."**

'that's right, but we can't expect to be trusted so easily.'

The rest of the week nothing happened. We couldn't find Chiyo and we didn't play with Gaara. Either we missed each other when we came to the park or we were just busy.

I didn't see Gaara until the last week. I wasn't even thinking about it when I ran into him and his siblings at the market. He noticed me as well, since his eyes widened and he looked a bit happy and relieved. I waved at him and ran up to him. This would be the first time I meet his siblings who weren't that much older than me.

"Hey Gaara-san, how have you been?" The way people were looking at me made me want to punch something. Even his siblings who I knew were only scared because of Shukaku, were looking at me strangely. Gaara seemed to retreat back into a frightened, self conscious child. Did he think I wouldn't talk to him in public? Probably.

"It's to bad we couldn't play these last few days." His siblings must have been really confused.

"Are you two his big sister and brother?" They looked at me weirdly, but nodded.

"It's really nice to meet the both of you. I'm visiting Suna and only recently was able to befriend Gaara-san." Their eyes widened and looked at Gaara who was hugging his bear and smiling up at me with watery eyes. Probably because I had publically said he was my friend. It wouldn't seem to weird, since people where weird like that when making friends. Friendship just formed naturally.

"Uhm...I'm Temari...the oldest sibling." I nodded and smiled.

"Nice to meet you Temari-san...and your?" I asked looking at Kankuro. He shook his head and smiled nervously.

"I'm Kankuro...nice to meet you?" I tilted my head and chuckled at their confusion.

"Sorry Gaara-san, but I can't play today. I have to get back home to my parents but maybe some other time. Your siblings can also come." I waved and started to run back home.

_** ~December~**_

Most of December went by fast. I had found Chiyo on the first week and we talked some more. I told her I was visiting Suna and didn't exactly know when we would be leaving but that I wanted to talk to her more. She was still a bit quiet around me but that was to be expected. She did answer some questions that I had asked her, so I felt we were progressing nicely.

I even met up with Gaara again. His siblings came too, and I was able to get them to play hide and seek. Although the beginning was awkward after a while things started to relax. They were all just kids after all, they just needed someone to remind them. They were surprised when I said for them to continue to play and that I would be right back. I wanted to get a snack for all of us since last time I couldn't really do that. I came back after a few minutes and as predicted things went back to be being awkward. Once they saw me each face was adorned with different levels of smiles. I distributed a drink to all of them which made them look surprised that I would do such I thing. Was it so hard to show some kindness to someone?

We played all day and we went home after a long fun day. I knew they didn't completely trust me; but just knowing they were interacting with each other made things okay.

On the third week I met with Chiyo again. She was starting to get used to me I think, because she was starting to ask me some questions too. Ebizō had arrived towards the end of the conversation, and I had asked him some questions as well. They were both very quiet but I knew that they were fun people. Chiyo herself was very mischievous when pretending to be dead. I couldn't see how that was funny since I would be more worried than amused. I always wondered if I should tell them that I'm from Konoha but decided against it. All the good things that I had accomplished would be ruined if they knew that I was from their rivaling country. I spent a longer time than usual with them, I felt like it would be a long time until I saw them again. I told them I wanted to be a shinobi as well and that I wanted to be a field medical ninja. They were actually genuinely surprised about that. Chiyo had even asked me if I knew about poisons and such. I told her I was barely getting familiar with the herbs but just her asking me, made me think she probably thought I was some sort of prodigy. I mean who asks a three year old if they know about poisons?

After talking with Chiyo and Ebizō I went to the park to see if there was any chance that the sand siblings were there. To my surprise and amusement they were, and when they looked up to see me they looked happy. Kankuro who expressed himself more jumped out of the swing and waved, while the others only smiled. It was pretty funny seeing them actually being together with an awkward atmosphere and then completely change in emotions once I arrive. We played again and to everyone's amazement my messenger hawk that Haruki had given me was flying above us. I was happy that I was going to get a reply and extended my hand out for the bird and I whistled for it's attention. The others must have never seen one up close, and most likely not one from water. I found out from Haruki that each village had it's own trade mark birds.

The bird landed gently on my arm and his huge wings that had been extended wide, pulled in. I untied the note and decided to read it later so I could have more time with the others. Seeing their curious looks, I explained it was from my grandfather. They nodded and Kankuro asked if that was my bird which I had said yes to. Placing the bird on a tree so it could wait until I finished playing. Today was actually very nice, I got two out of the three siblings to laugh while the last one wasn't probably going to laugh but at least he smiled. We played and drank some juice at the end of the day. They had asked me questions probably still not completely trusting me. They had asked me about my necklace which was always proudly visible. I told them it was from my family and that I would find a crystal of my own and add to the chain. We stayed together till the sun went down and as I saw their back retreating, I felt that same foreboding feeling as before. Inner and I thought nothing of it at the time and just left it as having a weird feeling.

Only when I was awoken with chaos did I finally know why I was feeling worried. I was taken away from our hotel by Madoka who quickly carried me away. Kioshi had sealed every thing he could and caught up quick. As I was carried away in the middle of the night with a full moon illuminating the whole village, I saw Shukaku released. I couldn't do anything as I was carried away through a chaotic crowd of villagers. We left Suna as quickly as we could, but I had this guilty feeling inside me as I was being carried away back to Konoha.

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**Longest chapter so far. Sorry it was so long for those of you who don't like long chapters. I had to get it all done so I could finally get Sakura to meet Naruto and the others. Anyways hope you enjoyed the chapter and continue to read and review!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Authors Note:** First day back from the trip! Reminder about the characters parents, they won't be exactly like the anime/manga. Hope you guys like it!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot. **

* * *

**Finally Home**

**Normal POV**

The sun was rising and shining it's warm glow upon the world. The night mist was disappearing and welcoming the bright suns rays. Everyone was awakening and beginning their daily morning routines. A family of three, however, had not slept well for the past week. They walked quietly through the road that lead them straight to the village of Konoha. The man lead the group and walked on, while the woman to his left showed the distress they all felt from the journey. The pink haired child to his right walked the road in silence, a messenger hawk perching on her right shoulder a bit restless. She paid it no attention, her thoughts clearly somewhere else.

**"What are you thinking about?"** Inner asked sensing her pensive aura.

'I don't know whether I should be happy that we're returning or sad that we left in such a crucial time.' Sakura voiced out her concerns.

**"Well, there wasn't much we could have done. Although Gaara was starting to trust us, he trusted his uncle more, and he was betrayed be him. What were the likeliness that he would listen to us?"**

'So your telling me, all that delicate work in befriending him was wasted because of his father and uncle?'

**"Pretty much, but in your memories of what you know, his uncle just lied. Even though Gaara finds out he they lied to him only until the Fourth Shinobi** **World War."** Sakura sighed dejectedly, thinking of everything she would have to prevent.

**"But cheer up! We're finally back home! There's no time to be sad, we have to find Naruto, Ino, and everyone else! And let's not forget about Sasuke-kun!"** Inner squealed and Sakura rolled her eyes and smiled.

'Of course. We could never forget about Sasuke.'

**"Okay, now your being sarcastic!"** Sakura smiled amusedly at Inner. She looked up at her parents, noticing their serious and tired demeanor. She looked ahead, she could now see the gates of Konoha in perfect view.

**Sakura's POV**

**"You have to act excited or they'll think your acting strange!"** I ran up ahead and laughed excitedly.

"Yay! Mommy, daddy, I can see the gates from here!" They smiled, the first genuine smile all week. The shock of seeing Shukaku unleashed in the village was hard for anyone to forget.

"That's right! We're almost home!" Madoka said with excitement, finally getting that twinkle of happiness in her eyes again.

We walked through the gates and showed the guards our papers, which was merely protocol since they knew Kioshi. We went straight home and it felt nice to enter a house we left over 17 months ago. The house was actually clean, I had thought it would be covered in a thick layer of dust. My thoughts were interrupted when Marianne appeared from out of the dinning room. She must have cleaned the place.

"Oh! Your back? Welcome home!" She said as she moved closer to us.

"It's good to be back, Marianne." She smiled and looked down at me clearly surprised.

"Oh my goodness! You've grown so much Sakura. And look at your beautiful hair it's longer!"...Oh Marianne, how much we've missed your rambles. I smiled up at her.

"Did you cut your hair, Mari-san?" She smiled and curled her hair with her finger.

"Yeah, short hair is in this year!" I tilted my head. I should have known she followed the trends. As the adults talked to each other I went up stairs to put away my stuff. The bird on my shoulder flew over to perch on my chair.

"Inner, we're gunna have to name him." I said as I put away the scrolls on my desk.

**"That's right! What about...Sora?!"** I raised an eyebrow and looked at the hawk.

"Sora?...Like the sky?" She nodded her head.

**"Yeah! Doesn't it sound cool?!"** I chuckled at Inner's childish attitude.

"Sure Inner, if you like that name, then his name will be Sora." Apparently he liked the name because he was flying in the room excitedly. I'm surprised how intelligent he is, it seemed that Haruki trained him very well.

"We need to get some things for him." I walked over to him and raised my arm so he could climb on. I was used to Sora being with me all the time, from all the traveling we did together he hardly left my side. I walked down stairs to see Madoka and Marianne talking on the sofa; while Yashiro who had come in, talked across the table with Kioshi on the single chairs.

"Good morning Yashiro-san." I said while bowing, making sure my arm stuck out so Sora wouldn't fall.

"And good morning to you too Sakura. How was your trip?" I smiled and walked over to them.

"Great! I had a lot of fun."

"Sakura, is that your bird?" Asked Marianne. I bet it looked weird, a three year old holding a bird that was half her size.

"Yes. Granddaddy gave him to me. His name is Sora."

"That's a lovely name Sakura." Said Madoka, I turned over to Kioshi.

"Can I go outside into the village with Sora?" Kioshi smiled and nodded, I mentally sighed.

"Will she be alright?" asked Marianne.

"Yes, Sakura's gotten better at her training and Sora was trained very well by Haruki. Both of them have become very close, Sora won't let anything happen to her." I smiled up at Sora and patted his head as he rubbed his head on my forehead.

I said bye and walked outside of the house. I stood there, closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

'Inner...we're finally going to do it. We're going to find the others and change the future.'

**"Yeah! Lets go!"** I snapped my eyes open and ran. Sora flapped his wings and jumped off to fly along side of me. We ran straight out of the small civilian district and into the main part of the village. They had the civilian district all around Konoha's outskirts and the shinobi district towards the middle. But sometimes they would mix up to go to the different places the villagers could find on either side.

'So where to first? We've never really memorized the layout of Konoha so where do we go?'

**"Hmm, lets start now! Go everywhere!"** I chuckled but followed her instruction. I ran through many streets and neighborhoods. I also passed through some markets and parks. They would always stop to stare, either because of my pink hair, or Sora flying along side me. Whichever one it was, I didn't care. No, my concentration was on finding anyone familiar. After one whole hour of looking for anyone and looking around at the new places, I found no one. We ended up resting in one of the parks. I sat on a bench and Sora followed.

'Now what? We couldn't find anyone.' I was surprised at how tiered I was. Since I couldn't really get a good run anywhere on my trip, running with weights was exhausting.

**"Augh! How come every time we look for someone, they don't appear!"** My eyes widened.

'Then we should stop looking.'

**"What?!"** I winced at her shrieking voice.

'Listen to me. We'll wait for them to appear. Besides, we don't know if their clan family allows them to be out by themselves yet. If Naruto is like how he was in the anime/manga then he should be wondering around somewhere.' I felt Inner nod and I jumped off the bench.

'Might as well check some parks.' I walked around Konoha and found many parks but none had a blonde kid moping around. After thirty minutes of searching, I stopped in the middle of the road and literally face palmed myself.

**"What are you doing?"**

'How could I ever forget that boys number one obsession.' I turned and made my way to what I thought was the center and looked everywhere for that famous Ichiraku Ramen. After running around like crazy trying to find that small restaurant, I had found it. And to my disappointment, no one was inside.

'As much as I want to try the famous ramen, it somehow wouldn't feel right without Naruto.'

**"Yeah, I agree, but darn it! I thought he was here for sure!"** I nodded. Sora landed gently on my shoulder. I walked the streets, in very low spirits.

'Might as well train.' I walked over to the training grounds. One that looked to be the most secluded. Without it being my intention, I found myself in the same training ground team 7 had their bell test in. It was just like in the anime/manga, only it now felt real to me. I had gotten used to this world on the trip but when I thought about my world, it felt weird being here.

I practiced my katas for an hour, and instead of the slow movements, I made myself go faster. The whole training grounds became a blurry background as I allowed the katas to flow out. After non-stop of katas, I moved on to endurance training. Since my endurance wasn't great, I worked on it for two hours. By the time I was done, I was a panting mess on the ground. Sticky from sweat and unmovable from the weights. I closed my eyes and concentrated on my surroundings. No one was around and with nothing else to do, I started swirling my chakra inside of me to help expand it. An hour latter I deemed it about time to head home for lunch.

Our objective in finding someone had failed, but maybe we were just not lucky today. I arrived home in a presentable manner, I wouldn't really care who saw me with sweat and dirt, but Inner and Madoka would.

"I'm back!" I called out as I opened the door.

"Sakura your back! Come in and greet the guest!" I raised an eyebrow. Guest? And why did Madoka sound so cheerful. When I arrived at the end of the entrance hallway, I almost wanted to laugh at the irony. Sitting in my living room was one of the persons I was running around the village trying to find. The Yamanaka family were calmly inspecting me silently as I walked up to stand beside the sitting Madoka. I bowed my head slightly towards them.

"Hello, my name is Sakura Haruno. It's very nice to meet you." I stood back up, allowing Sora to sit comfortably back on my shoulder. They seemed surprised at first with my manner of speaking, but they regained themselves after a moment.

"You've taught her well Madoka! If only Ino would sit still and listen to me!" Said the woman on the sofa. She had medium length blonde hair and blue eyes as well, but I could see her pupils unlike Inoichi and Ino's. I also noticed that her bangs were slightly similar to how Ino styled her hair later on. She must had gotten that from her mother, while the long hair was from her father.

Ino who was sitting in between them looking on calmly, although she did keep on looking at Sora. Her appearance was just like I remember, short blonde hair and pretty light blue eyes. She had yet to style her hair like hair parents, but it wouldn't take long.

Inoichi was sitting calmly and he too was the same. Long blonde hair that was a shade darker than the other two and blue pupil-less eyes. And his hair wasn't as spiky on top as he was usually portrayed in the anime/manga. I think being here in person gives you a different perspective on everything. I mean when I was in my world some of their hairstyles looked absurd. Who would have perfect triangles as spiky hair? Now I can see that their hair is not exactly as I had seen on the anime/manga. Everyone's hair looked normal to me. From the texture, styles, colors, and I could even see their roots and each strand. I was snapped out of my thoughts and turned away from Inoichi's hair to face Madoka.

"Sakura just likes to learn a lot." Said Madoka to Ino's mother, who I had yet to learn her name.

"Well it's always good to see someone so young take pride in what their parents do." Said Inoichi as he looked at me look at him. Madoka and Kioshi must have told their friends about me.

"Mommy?" I asked quietly. She understood what I meant but was beat by Ino's mother.

"That's right! How rude of us! We're the Yamanaka clan. My name is Naomi Yamanaka, my husband is Inoichi and our daughters name is Ino" Hmm, so that's her name.

"Nice to meet you Naomi-san, Inoichi-sama, Ino-san." Naomi smiled down at me.

"Sakura, these are our friends and we thought it would be nice for our daughters to be friends too." Informed Kioshi. I looked over to Ino and then to Madoka.

"Would you like to go outside with Ino-chan and talk?"

"I don't mind. What about you Ino-san?" I asked her, she smiled and nodded her head.

"Alright, you two can go to the backyard and talk." I nodded and waited for Ino. She received a gentle encouraging push from her mother, soon she stood in front of me.

"Will you bring your bird?" She asked me quietly. I nodded and smiled as I led her to the back yard.

'What should we talk about?' I asked Inner as we stepped outside.

**"How about likes, dislikes, hobbies. You know, the usual."** I turned around and noticed she was still staring at Sora.

"Do you want to pet him?" She sent me a bright smile of happiness. I knew she found Sora cute, she was a three year old child after all.

"Can I really?" She all but squealed. I nodded my consent and lowered Sora down to my arm. She walked over slowly as to not startle him and pet him. She had yet to stop smiling.

"He's so soft and cute!" I smiled at her childish behavior.

"If you straighten your arm he will sit on it." Her smile widened, if at all possible and she immediately straightened out her arm. I nudged him a little and he jumped onto her arm.

"Cool! He's so smart too! Ne, what's his name?"

"Sora." Her eyes looked up.

"Like the sky!" She began to giggle.

'Everyone seems to like the name you choose.' Inner smiled smugly.

**"I know."** I rolled my eyes and snorted quietly at her self-satisfied attitude. We moved on to sit at the table and Ino had moved Sora to the table and continued to pet him.

"So what do you like to do?" She looked up at me and smiled.

"I like many things. Flowers, clothes, cute things, candy, mommy and daddy, playing, animals and other stuff! What about you?" Oh boy, she was going to be a chatterbox.

"Uhm, I like mommy and daddy, granddaddy, Sora, pastries, animals, flowers, reading, uhm...training." Her eyes widened.

"Training? Are you going to be a ninja?" I nodded and she smiled.

"Me too! All the other girls I know haven't decided, your the first!" That's strange, I would have thought she hung around talented ninja, but she is three years old. The time went by fast, we talked about many things ranging from colors, hobbies, animals, to my hair color and other things. By the time we knew it, it was already time for her to leave.

"Ino! It's time to go!" Shouted Naomi.

"Aww! Well...bye Sakura-chan, bye Sora." I smiled at Ino's sad face as she pet Sora goodbye.

"Maybe we can play sometime?" I said and her face lit up in happiness almost instantly.

"Really?! Do you promise?!" I chuckled and smiled.

"I promise."

"Yay! I'll get to see you again!" She said as we went back inside. Her parents were already at the door. She ran up to them as I took my time and walked there.

"Hey daddy, guess what!" Inoichi looked down at his daughter's smiling face.

"What is it Ino?"

"Sakura-chan said we could play again!" Ino looked really happy and like any parent, seeing their child happy made them happy.

"Oh? Well if her parents say it's okay then we're okay with it as well." He looked at Kioshi and Madoka.

"Of course! That sounds great!" They all agreed on scheduling another play date and soon we were left alone.

"Sakura, I'm glad you were able to make friends with Ino-chan!" I smiled and nodded.

"I had a good time talking with Ino-san." I told Madoka honestly.

"Then I'll make sure to schedule another play day soon." I nodded up at her.

"Will you tell me when you find out?" She nodded down at me.

We ate lunch together and afterwards we went out shopping to get things for Sora. We went inside some animal store and bought Sora a pretty white cage; but since I didn't like animals to be caged in, I was going to take off the door. That way he can just fly in and out whenever he wants. The cage had a fluffy pillow like thing at the bottom so he could sleep comfortably. We were looking at the accessories when Inner pointed out an anklet. It was cute, it was a pretty gold color which would match with his dark colors. Kioshi soon noticed it too.

"That one's nice. How about we get it and engrave it?" I smiled up at him.

"Can we?" He nodded and patted my hair careful not to mess up the braid.

"What should it say?" Inner and I thought about it.

"Can it just have the Haruno symbol and his name?" He nodded and told the vendor what we wanted. After a few minutes, we stepped out of the store. Kioshi carried the cage while Sora was on my shoulder wearing his new anklet. It looked good hanging on his thin yet powerful legs.

"Do you want to go play or head back home?"

'Maybe we could find someone?'

"I'll go around the village."

"Alright, be safe." I nodded and ran the opposite way. I walked through the village and couldn't find anyone. I had even passed Ichiraku again and no one was there. I was starting to lose hope, I knew my sudden good luck would run out eventually. I arrived at a small bridge, it wasn't the team 7 bridge. Sora flew over to perch on the railing, while I sat beside him. Although small, the river underneath was actually pretty deep, about four feet, easily able to drown someone of my size. Good thing I was a good swimmer, and the training has helped too.

"How hard is it to find someone!" I spoke out loud letting out my frustration. I heard sniffling and stopped my outburst before it could get louder. Looking around for the source of the sound. I concentrated on listening as well as any chakra near by. I found a tiny point of chakra up in front of me. I looked over to the trees where I had sensed something. The shadows made it hard to see but I squinted my eyes, straining them to see. It was unmistakably a person for the sniffling sounded like crying. They had on a dark colored jacket that helped them hide with the shadows, but what I could see was the blonde bright hair. The color was brighter than Madoka's and Ino's.

**"Outer is that...Naruto?!"** I blinked my eyes and rubbed them to make sure I was seeing correctly.

'I think your right...but he's crying.' What should I do to get his attention? I looked around me. There was only the river under the bridge. I contemplated my choices and grimaced when I looked between Naruto and the cold looking water. I sighed, there really wasn't anything to debate about, the choice was clear.

'On a scale of one to ten, how good am I at acting?' She tapped her chin.

**'Hmm, seven-eight?"** We both shrugged, that was good enough. And I took a big breath. Standing up on the railing I walked steadily on it. I went on like that for awhile until I found the safest place. Once found I _accidentally_ slipped. Even though it wasn't a big bridge, I was still pretty small so it took awhile to hit the water. Luckily for me, there was actually a loud enough splash so he could hear, and it helped greatly that Sora was flapping his wings rapidly and squawking. I landed at the bottom and pushed to swim up. Naruto had warily approached the edge. His features mixed with concern and anxiety. He had the remnants of the trail of tears that were streaming down his face moments ago.

"Hey! A-Are you ok?!" He asked wondering if I was hurt. I shook my head no and flailed my hands around, in an attempt to seem like I couldn't swim, problem was...I forgot to put into account the fact that I had heavy weights on. So the current was doing a fine job in taking me down the river. He looked around in shock for anything that could help; he ran to a tree that had fallen down across the river. He carefully walked across the trunk. He straddled it and leaned his tummy on it as he reach his arm towards me.

"Grab my hand!" I splashed my way over to him fighting the river and reached for his hand. Poor kid, he was so small, I just had to help out.

This would actually be my first time trying to pull this off. Concentrating on my chakra, I made as much as I thought I would need travel to the center of my palm. I concentrated on sticking it to the tree trunk, making sure I didn't make it explode. Once I knew it would withstand the rapid current pushing against me, I pushed with the strength that I had accumulated over the past years. I made it appear as if Naruto did all the work, wouldn't want him to question my strength so soon. I sat on the tree trunk beside him all wet and cold, but it was worth it. I looked over to the shocked yet proud boy. Up close I could definitely see his fathers features. How did people miss that? It practically slapped you in the face, especially without his Hitai-ate. The only difference being the whisker like marks or his goofy grin and personality, which he got from his mother.

"Are you okay?" He asked, once the shock had passed away. I nodded and noticed him take off his blue jacket. I hadn't seen him wear before, but I had to remind myself that I don't know what everyone has in their closets.

I watched as he gripped it nervously and was quite intrigued on what he was intending to do with it. He then gently placed it around my shoulders with a small blush on his cautious face and I felt the warmth not only incase my tiny shivering body but also my heart.

How could such a young boy be so generous to villagers who treated him so poorly? I looked at the boy, who was quietly sitting beside me, lost in the situation. I could practically feel his nervousness seep all around us. He was so afraid of being reprimanded by strangers, that I wouldn't be surprised if he was just waiting for me to get over my shock and leave him...Just like all the others.

'Inner. Let's make sure he never feels alone again.' I said with resolve laced through my words. She nodded inside my head and I knew she would cry if I did not say something.

"Ne, what's your name?" He looked up from his lap surprised.

"My...name?" He asked with that child like voice that every kid has at this age. I nodded as I waited for him to answer.

"...I'm Naruto Uzumaki." He said quietly. I tilted my head at him and then stood up carefully. I looked down at the boy and smiled, a genuine one. I reached my hand towards his.

"I'm Sakura Haruno. Thank you very much Naruto-san for saving me." His eyes widened and watered instantly. He reached for my hand hesitantly as if waiting for me to pull back and say it was a joke. I would never treat him like that. His tiny hands were incased by mine and I helped him up.

'...No ones ever thanked me before...' And that was when Inner broke out and cried. She wailed and ranted about how people were so mean and how we would brutally hurt anyone who dared make him cry.

I was actually surprised at how many insecure thoughts he thought of in the span of five seconds. And I agreed with Inner, we were going to make sure he didn't get bullied anymore, and if they didn't listen the first time, God help the fools that don't.

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**First day back and already making progress! How did you guys like the chapter? Thanks for all the review you guys! I hope you continue to read and review!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Authors Note:** Sakura gets to meet some other characters! Hopefully you guys like it and enjoy!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons** "Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically "_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot. **

* * *

**Again**

**Sakura's POV**

I looked into the eyes of the insecure boy in front of me.

"Ne, Naruto-san, do you mind if I return your jacket later? After I get it cleaned up." He shook his head rapidly.

"No! That's okay! I don't mind if its dirty!" I frowned at his generous nature.

"No Naruto-san! I made it dirty now I have to clean it and you can't stop me." His eyes widened. The poor boy really has never been treated nice. I suppose the Hokage has always been with him, but Naruto sees him as his grandfather figure. He needs some friends in his life.

"O-Okay..." His hands fiddled with the hem of his shirt.

"Ne Naruto-san, come here tomorrow and I'll return your jacket." He looked surprised that I wanted to meet him again. And he allowed a tiny flicker of hope to cross his facial features. He nodded his head slowly and before it could become awkward for him, we got off the trunk.

"Make sure to come tomorrow in the morning, ok." He nodded and we went our separate ways for today.

I arrived home all wet and cold although the jacket and Sora provided enough heat to keep me from shaking. I was almost positive that if either Madoka or Kioshi saw me, they would ask questions. So I was attempting to use all the training I have learned to not get caught. I made it half way up the stairs only to be stopped by Madoka.

"Sakura? Why are you all wet?" I winced quietly and turned around to face her.

"I was playing in the park with Sora and slipped and fell in the stream" I had to change river to stream or she would most likely not allow me to be by myself anymore.

"Oh Sakura. Come on, let's get you cleaned."

**~After shower~**

The rest of the day went by fast. Once out of the shower we all ate together. After dinner, Madoka started teaching me about the basics taught at the academy. Not only was the first years at the academy about ninjas but they also taught the children in advanced academics. Since I had already finished the etiquette lessons, Madoka said she would just teach me other basic knowledge. After an hour and a half of studying, it was around bed time, but I made sure Naruto's jacket was cleaned and ready to be returned. I made sure to tell them about Naruto's kind help, leaving out his name for the time being. They seemed happy about me making a friend and liked that he had saved me, though they didn't know all the details. I was still happy they were thinking positively about him.

I was in bed and although I was tired from all the training, I just couldn't sleep.

**"Do you think he'll come tomorrow?"**

'I'm sure he will. He probably still doesn't believe he can become friends with us, but hopefully he begins to trust us a bit more.' It became quiet as I thought of everything that's happened and will happen.

'Inner for now, let's try and make friends. We will talk about Naruto to our parents, so they can listen to us about the real Naruto. We have two and a half more months until our fourth birthday. We will introduce him to them on that day, surely we will have soften their hearts by then.'

**"That's a good idea! But don't forget about Sasuke-kun! We have to meet him!"** I rolled my eyes and smiled, but as I thought about what she said, realization struck me, and my smile fell.

'Inner, we really can't forget about Sasuke. We only have four years after our fourth birthday before the Uchiha massacre happens. I think Sasuke was around eight when it happened.' Now with this new piece of information my head was starting to hurt. I sighed and closed my eyes trying to fall asleep.

**~Next morning~**

I got up at six o'clock and couldn't go back to sleep. I got out of bed and did my morning routine. I quietly walked down the hall, it seems Madoka and Kioshi were really tired from the trip, for they were still asleep. I walked into the backyard and decided to work on my endurance for at least three hours. I also made sure to add chakra into my weights.

From all the extra endurance training I was planning on adding, hopefully by the time the massacre occurred, I could hold my own in battle. Even if only for a few minutes. Endurance wasn't the only thing to work on. I was also going to take my chakra training up to a higher level.

After three hours of intense pain in my limbs, I sat down cross-legged under the Sakura tree. I spiraled my chakra inside and made it flow through my chakra circulatory system faster and more fluently. After an hour of non-stop chakra exercises, Madoka called me in for breakfast.

"Good morning Sakura! How was your training?"

"Good morning! And training went well." We ate together and I found out that they both had to go to work today.

"Hey daddy can I go to the library?" I asked as they prepared to leave.

"If you want to go, you can, just stay safe." I nodded and smiled up at him. When he left I went up stairs to get Naruto's jacket. I came back down and went over to Sora, who was finished eating.

"Will you visit me in the bakery Sakura?" I turned over to Madoka and smiled.

"Okay mommy!" I left the house after Madoka and went walking straight towards the park I had last seen Naruto.

When I arrived I was prepared to see Naruto sitting on a swing waiting with a face full of happiness. No, instead I found myself alone with Sora.

**"Where the heck is he?!"** I stayed calm, unlike Inner, and walked over to a bench.

'Maybe he's just running a little late. ' I waited and took the time to do some more chakra exercises. With all the practice Kioshi has given me during our trip, I could now sense people's chakra from longer distances. It became a game for us, we played 'ninja hide and seek' as he called it. He would make it impossible for me to find him, but through all that, I have become a lot more sensitive to chakra. Yesterday I had tried to memorize Naruto's chakra signature, his warm and nervous chakra was easy to remember. Ino's as well, I was going to make sure I knew how to find everyone quickly in case of an emergency. After an hour of waiting and chakra sensing, I decided to find him.

"Sora, go around the village and look for Naruto." Moments like these made me glad that I had trained him with Haruki. Although Haruki had trained with him more, I was able to help train him on how to find objects and people.

He took off into the sky, and being the intelligent bird that he is, he knew who I wanted him to find. I jumped off the bench and patted down the wrinkles on my pastel pink dress, with blue flowers.

'Okay. Time to find Naruto...again.' I walked into the village looking around and trying to sense him.

**"Augh! Where is he?!"** Just as I was going to speak, I heard the familiar call of Sora. Looking up, I saw him flying above me in circles.

'We're about to find out.' Holding on tightly to Naruto's jacket, I started running in the direction that Sora was flying in. Silly me, I should really pay more attention to the things around me. For I found myself tackled to the ground. It was obviously an accident, since I don't really know anyone who would purposefully tackle me. I heard them grunt and move away. I rubbed my head and looked over to the person partly responsible for the accident. I regretted it instantly, closing my eyes in a useless attempt to stop the inevitable to happen.

**"Oh. My. God! Kyaaaaaa! It's Sasuke-kun!"** I winced, if I had ever thought she couldn't ever get louder, she just proved me wrong. I looked over to the boy who was sporting a very grumpy face. He wore around the same style of clothing like in the anime/manga. Black shorts and a regular dark blue tee-shirt, with ninja shoes. I'm sure his shirt proudly displayed the Uchiha clan symbol on his back. I stood up after he did.

"Sorry." He frowned at me.

"Hn." I raised an eyebrow. Was he like that since he was a child too?

"You should stop looking up at the sky when you run." I blinked at him.

'Dear god, he's going to be a brat about it.'

**"Don't call Sasuke-kun a brat!"** Ignoring Inner, I responded to his comment.

"Sorry. I was following my hawk." He raised an eyebrow and looked up. And of course, Sora had to pick that moment to be no where near me. He sent me an accusatory frown.

"Hn. There's no hawk." I sighed at the obvious.

"He must have left. I was looking for someone and then you bumped into me." He raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. Taking on the famous prideful stance that the Uchiha's had filled with arrogance.

"Me? Don't you mean _you_ bumped into me?" I tilted my head.

"We both bumped into each other at the same time." He shook his head.

"No. You bumped into me first." My left eye twitched. I crossed my arms.

"If it was my fault, and you were clearly looking at where you were going, then why didn't you move? We could have easily avoided all this." His eyes widened and he looked flustered. He looked everywhere but at me for a few seconds, most likely trying to find a comeback. He soon decided to use the special Uchiha glare. Though being a child didn't really help him intimidate people. I smiled and stared him down, not glaring, just staring. We stayed silent for awhile until he tsked and placed his hands in his pockets.

**"Kya! So cute!"** I wanted to roll my eyes at Inner and Sasuke, so I did.

"Well I have to go. I have to find a friend and my hawk." He glared at me on the last part, and I ran passed him not caring if he believed me or not.

**"No! Turn back! We have to talk to him more!"** I continued to run in the general direction I had last seen Sora fly towards.

"Inner, we'll have more time to talk to Sasuke later. Right now we have to find Naruto." She pouted and I had a feeling she was going to give me the cold shoulder for a while. After five minutes of running, I found him walking in the streets. I stopped and observed him, I clearly saw the invisible wall separating him and the villagers...metaphorically speaking. He kept to himself and the villagers had no shame in numbers to show their distrust towards the boy.

I closed my eyes and felt for their chakra's. Whether ninjas, civilians, animals, and plants everything contained chakra. And if I concentrated hard enough I could feel their emotions without my new ability. I immediately felt all different emotions mixed with their chakra. They were mostly afraid, but they hid it well when they were together. Instead of fear they used anger and attacked verbally and when they got brave, physically. There was a small chakra in the center of all that animosity, a scared, lonely emotion. I slowly opened my eyes and stared at his back that was in front of me until he was far out of sight. I took one step forward and then ran making sure I ran fast enough to keep Naruto in sight. We neared a park when he stopped and I heard sniffling, along with seeing his shoulders tremble. He lifted his arm up to his face and rubbed his tears away. I took this opportunity to go up to him.

"Naruto-san?" He flinched and turned around to face me, although his eyes avoided mine. I said nothing about him ditching me in the morning. He had enough time with the villagers and he probably thought I was tricking him.

"Here's your jacket. Nice and clean." I extended my hand out to him. He looked down at the jacket in my hand, he slowly grabbed it and pulled it up against him.

"Since we're here, do you want to play?" I said as I looked around at the playground and then back to him. He looked happy yet uncertain. I poked him on the arm and he flinched.

"Come one. Lets play." I walked over to the swings and smiled brightly when he came over to sit on the swings. We swung on the swings quietly for a while.

**"We're getting no where!"** I agreed with Inner.

"Ne, Naruto what game do you want to play?" He looked at me nervously and shook his shoulders.

"I-I don't know." I tilted my head and jumped off in mid swing. Landing with my back to him, I twirled and met his amazed face. I smiled at him in encouragement.

"Come on, lets play tag!" He smiled and his eyes glistened with happiness and unshed tears. He stopped swinging and walked over to me.

"Alright! Ready?" He nodded. We began playing and at first things started out slow; but as time passed he began to get more relaxed. We played for a long time and Naruto actually seemed to be having fun. He laughed and thankfully didn't cry, so Inner and I were happy.

"Naruto-san, it's about time for me to go see my mother. Lets play again sometime okay?" He nodded a bit more quickly than before but I could still see it in his eyes, he had yet to fully trust me. I knew trust came with time, and I was prepared to make him trust me no matter how long it took. When he left to go home, I left to go to the library before going to see Madoka.

The Library was a big place. I walked beside the book shelves and scanned the titles. Noticing that there were many types of books and scrolls. After ten minutes of searching for the ones about chakra, I found them. Problem was, they were really high up. My neck was hurting just looking at them, I know that even if I stretched on my tippy toes, it wouldn't work. My last resort was chakra. Thinking back on my first meeting with Naruto, I traveled my chakra down to the soles of my feet. When I was sure my concentration wouldn't break I placed my foot on the book shelf. Whether this was allowed or not, I didn't know; but they didn't know I was doing this, so all was okay.

I pulled back my foot and noticed that it stuck to the shelf perfectly. I placed my left foot above the other and felt confident I wouldn't fall. I took a deep breath and walked, making sure everything was the same, from my focus to the amount of chakra I allowed to gather under my foot.

**"Just a few more!"** I smiled as I looked at the books I wanted to read. I was in reach now so I took the opportunity and barely managed to brush the spine of the book with my finger tip, when a voice startled me.

"Hey! Your not supposed to do that!"

"Sasuke, quiet down. We're in the library." I was glad that my focus on my chakra was still strong, but I really, really did not like the sound of the second voice. I turned and looked at the people who had appeared.

**"KYA! Two times in a day! This must be fate! And there's two cuties!"** I looked at the irritated child first and then stared at his unperturbed big brother, Itachi Uchiha. The one responsible for the massacre that happened in the anime/manga. It's not that I didn't want to meet him. I just hadn't expected us to meet until later. Sasuke frowned and looked away.

"It's you again." Sasuke mumbled but Itachi and I both clearly heard him. I reached for the book I had wanted and retracted the chakra away from my feet. I pushed off softly and performed a back flipped. After I landed on my feet I smiled over to Sasuke.

"So we meet again."

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**Well Sakura met Sasuke and next chapter she'll officially get to know him. This chapter was pretty short compared to the last few chapters, but I will try to make the next one longer. Hope you enjoyed the chapter and keep reviewing!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Authors Note: **Oh dear, I'm telling all my readers I want to be realistic when I mess up on the dates. Silly me, I can't believe I forgot Itachi was thirteen when the massacre happened. Thank you reviewers for being nice and pointing things out to me. You guys are seriously a bunch of help. There will be some time skips later on after Sakura meets everyone. And when the massacre does happen (if it does, hint hint) it will be when he's thirteen and everyone else is eight. I hope you continue to read and review!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Ramen and Cookies**

**Sakura's POV**

Sasuke frowned at me and then smirked.

"Where's your hawk?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Outside." Wasn't that obvious? Although, he probably still thinks I was lying about having a hawk.

"Hmph, of course it is." I sighed and looked over to Itachi who stayed quiet but had a glint of amusement in his eyes directed at Sasuke.

'Itachi is about five year's older right? So he's around nine. He still looks like any other kid to me. Though I know better than to judge someone by appearance. He's most likely a genin right now and getting ready to take part in the upcoming chunin exams. And most importantly he has already mastered his Sharingan.'

**"I don't care about all that! He's still cute!"** Oh Inner, I don't think she worries half as much as me. I bowed at him in greeting.

"Hello." He inclined his head in my direction.

"Hello. It's nice to meet you. I wasn't aware Sasuke had made a friend so quickly." At the last part he received a glare from Sasuke.

'I'm glad he's still nice. Inner, we should do everything we can to try and keep it that way. Since he was very young during the Third Shinobi World War he became a pacifist, lets make sure he doesn't commit the same mistakes for his and everyone's sake.'

**"I agree completely!"**

"She's not my friend." I felt a stab of pain from within, knowing it to be from Inner. But whether it was from Inner or not, it still hurt to know the person you wanted to help didn't like you.

"Sasuke, don't be rude." He pouted and looked away. Before he could continue to be a brat and hurt Inner's feelings I decided it was enough time spent with Sasuke for now.

"Well I found what I was looking for, bye." I walked the opposite way they came in. When I finished checking out the book, I made my way to the bakery. Before I even rounded the corner that lead to the bakery, a crowd of people where standing near the door. I observed them and found out that they were waiting to be let in. Apparently the inside was already full. I could see through the windows all the chaos that was happening inside. Walking quickly through the crowd I was able to make it inside. Of course, people asked if I was passing. And it was hard to answer considering I really was. They seemed to calm down once I told them I was Madoka's daughter and they let me in.

Looking for Madoka through all this chaos was a real challenge. In the end, I found her by following her chakra.

"Mommy." She turned over and gave me a tired smile.

"Hey Sakura. It seems I'm a little busy. Can you do me a big favor?" I nodded, if her appearance didn't give away how busy she was I don't know what did, well maybe perhaps the people waiting outside. She handed me a big basket filled with tiny pastries of all kinds. As she prepared more she explained the reason for all the people. It seems Madoka was very famous for her one-of-a-kind sweets that only she could make.

"Can you go outside and distribute these to the people. Some of them have been waiting for hours." I smiled and nodded.

"Sure mommy. I can do that."

"If you run out, come and get more." I nodded and walked towards the door. As I opened the door, I took a look around and then at the basket. I'm sure we'll need more pastries. Now, where to start distributing. The people had gathered in a crowd instead of an organized line, so it was hard to tell.

**"Now what? Which ones were here first?"** I looked around. There was no other way to tell.

'I have a plan.' I cleared my throat.

"Excuse me! Can you all please get in an organized line so we can know who was here first!" My high pitched voice must have been heard by them, for they quickly got in line.

**"I didn't think you could raise your voice that high." **Inner taunted, I smiled at her.

"Of course I can. And besides, it's not like I need to raise it. People can hear me just fine when I normally speak.' I walked to the front of the line and lifted the basket up.

"Some snacks for all your waiting." They smiled and leaned down to get one. Considering my size and the amount of adults, there was a lot of leaning. I kept walking along the line, waiting patiently for the people to grab a pastry. Kids where the first ones to reach the basket, already knowing I was handing pastries out. As I approached the middle, the basket was already running out of pastries.

I pulled back the basket that was all out of sweets. I would have to run back in to get some more. I heard a grunt to my left and almost dreaded the fact that I was getting familiar with it and the owners chakra. Looking to the left I came face to face with Sasuke.

**"Yay! Three times today!"** I ignored inner.

"Hello. This is the third time we've meet today. Are you following me?" There were chuckles heard behind him as he sported an incredulous look on his face. I took notice of his mother and brother behind him staring amusedly at him.

"No! Why would I!" I shrugged and smiled.

"I don't know. Anyways, sorry but I'm all out of sweets. I have to go back inside and get more." I heard the familiar cry of Sora and looked up.

"Or maybe not." He was flying down majestically with a basket's handle in his talons. The sun behind him was bright, illuminating his pretty red feathers. I lifted my right arm for him to perch on while my left grabbed the basket. I had placed the empty one on the ground in order to have empty hands. His powerful large wings pulled in and tucked behind him. He rubbed his head up against mine. I smiled at his form of asking for forgiveness.

"All is forgiven. Take the empty basket back to mommy." I forgave him for ditching me before when I met Sasuke. He jumped on the handle and extended his beautiful wings out and flapped, creating a small gust of wind. The kids around me stared after him in excitement. Even Sasuke looked on with awe. I looked over and smirked at Sasuke who looked back in dread.

"Told you so." Those were the only words needed to make the poor boy flush in embarrassment. I lifted the basket over to him trying to alleviate his embarrassment.

"Here, have a pastry." He eyed me suspiciously but when his eyes looked at the sweets in front of him, his eyes held a hint of happiness. I watched him take a cookie and eat it happily. I guess any child can look cute with the right inducements.

**"He's so cute!"** I walked a step over for the rest of his family to take one.

"Thank you." Thanked Itachi, I smiled and nodded while moving onto his mother.

"Why thank you. Does a family member of yours work here?" I smiled and nodded.

"Yes. My mother works here. Madoka Haruno." She looked surprised.

"Madoka-chan? Your her daughter?" I blinked while tilting my head up at her.

'Madoka-chan?'

**"What if she's our mothers friend!"** That could be it.

"Yes. I'm Sakura Haruno, nice to meet you." I bowed to the older woman.

"Oh my, your so cute! You don't come by here often do you?" I shook my head no.

"It's very nice to meet you then. My name is Mikoto Uchiha and these are my sons, Itachi and Sasuke." I bowed again towards the long black haired woman with equally dark eyes.

"It's very nice to meet a friend of my mothers. I hope to be able to talk to you more someday." She nodded and smiled.

"That's a lovely idea." I nodded.

"Okay, see you later Mikoto-san, Itachi-san, and Sasuke-san." I walked up to the next people who were waiting in line.

When I finished distributing the pastries to everyone, I went hack inside. I saw Madoka making pastries and I also saw Chouko and Yashiro on the other side of the counter, taking orders.

"Sakura-chan! Welcome back!" I smiled up at Chouko.

"It's good to be back. Ne, is there some thing I can do to help, Chouko-san?" She tapped her chin with her finger, reminding me of Inner.

"You can greet customers and lead them to a table if their staying." I nodded and walked over to the door. Everytime someone came in I greeted with a welcome and asked them if they were staying or taking out. I was getting lots of smiles from the customers but I didn't mind and just smiled and waved. The bell at the door helped me know someone walked in by the jingle it made. After sitting a family down at a table, I heard the bell jingle.

"Welcome." I noticed it was Mikoto and the others.

"Will you be staying or taking out?"

"We're taking out." I nodded as I walked with them to the counter. They were placing their orders with Yashiro and no one was coming in yet so I stayed with Chouko. Madoka soon came down and joined us.

"Sakura, thanks for helping. Are you ready to go?" I nodded up at her, she noticed Mikoto up ahead.

"Mikoto?" Said woman turned and smiled brightly.

"Madoka-chan!" They hugged and talked, it seemed like they were good friends, just like with Ino's mother. Once they finished talking they headed out the door but not before waving goodbye.

"I see you've met Mikoto." I smiled

"Mikoto-san's nice" she smiled and picked me up.

"What about her kids? Do you think you'll be able to befriend the Uchiha's?" I chuckled at the memory of today.

"Yeah, they were nice too." The rest of the evening we spent together along with Kioshi. Since it was late all we did was take showers, eat, and then studied before we went to bed.

The next few days were pretty boring. All I did was train and read all day. I went into the village but that didn't help. I couldn't find Naruto anywhere and he was far away too for I couldn't sense his chakra. So I spent my days training and reading different books that I checked out from the library. My training was going great, I could now release chakra out of 200 tenketsu though it was still small amounts. I had also started the new katas for both Kioshi's lessons and Haruki's. I had begun to learn the new forms that were from the Land of Earth. Chouko had come by in those boring days. She made me show her the forms from all three dances. She said that even though I'm done with them, I just needed to practice so the dance could flow without me thinking about it.

The earth dance was a very powerful dance. It had it's beauty just like all the others, but it traded all those graceful, dainty movements for precise almost striking movements. When I saw chouko dance it, I had gotten an idea. I had thought about how almost everyone in the anime/manga had their very own fighting style. So I asked her if I could incorporate the dance moves into my very own fighting style. She said I probably could but we would need Kioshi to be with us so we could combine his fighting knowledge along with her dancing prowess.

When he arrived home, I asked him if he could help me create my own fighting style. He readily agreed to help out in my training. Inner and I were excited to create a fighting style just for ourselves. At the end of the week Madoka said we were going to meet Ino and her mother at the park on Saturday, so I was looking forward to the weekend.

**~Saturday~**

I woke up early, and although I wasn't very cheerful every morning, I was on this one. When something exciting was going to happen, who wouldn't wake up early and happy? I brushed my teeth and washed my face. I made a side dutch braid with my bangs, having no parting so the bangs wouldn't get in my face. I put on a pastel yellow dress with blue birds flying across the dress.

After getting ready, I went down stairs and was greeted by Madoka and Kioshi. We ate breakfast together before Kioshi went to work. Madoka and I worked on my study's until it was time to go.

Finally when it was time to go we cleaned up and left home, making our way towards the park. The day was beautiful, it made a nice day to play in the park. Sora had even taken to flying in the bright cloudy sky. Once we had arrived I immediately sensed Ino sitting by her mother, with all her excitement barely contained. When she saw me she practically jumped off the bench and waved.

"Sakura-chan!" I smiled and waved back.

"Hello Ino-san, Naomi-san." I said while bowing slightly.

"Hello Sakura-chan, Madoka."

"Hello to the both of you too." Madoka and Naomi began to chat as they sat on the bench, while Ino and I played.

"You didn't bring Sora?" I looked up and pointed. As she looked up her smile grew in size. She called for him and jumped around to gain his attention.

"Whistle and hold your arm out." She did as I said but her attempt at whistling was a bit quiet.

"I can't whistle!" She said sadly as she dropped her arm.

"Here, let me do it." I was also pretty bad at whistling, but Haruki taught me how. I whistled loudly for his attention, making the sound echo in the quiet area. Raising my arm, Sora flew down and perched on it. Ino had a look of fascination.

"Sakura-chan! That was amazing!" I smiled and moved Sora closer to her so she could pet him.

"Ne, Ino-san, what should we play?" She tapped her chin with her finger.

"How about...hide and seek!" I nodded. I left Sora on the ground and started to hide from Ino who was the seeker. We played for a whole hour.

"Sakura-chan your too good at hiding!" I smiled at her pouting face.

"But Ino-chan, so are you." Ino had told me in the middle of the game that I should stop adding -san to her name, since we were friends.

"Yeah, but that's because you stink at finding people." That was true. I had decided to play fair and not use chakra sensing so my finding skills were a bit...bad.

"I know." She giggled and patted my back.

"It's okay! You weren't that bad!" I smiled at her attempt to cheer me up. After playing hide and seek we played on the park swings and slides to figure out our next game. For the time being, we talked some more about ourselves. We now knew each others birthdays and I told her about my travels. We kept talking until some of her friends came by.

"Ino-Chan! We didn't know you would be here. Oh! Who's this?" They appeared to be our age or perhaps a bit older.

"I came here to play with Sakura-chan!" The girls looked at me and of course, their stares zeroed in on my forehead and hair.

"Wow, you have a big forehead! And look at that hair! Is it even real?" Ino frowned slightly at their rude remarks but I didn't really care.

"My forehead isnt that big. And yes, my real hair color is pink." I answered her question. She raised an eyebrow and laughed along with the other girls.

"Well, you can speak well for a little brat." Ino pushed off the swing.

"Miki-Chan! Don't call Sakura-chan a brat!"

"It's okay Ino-chan. We're just kidding." She frowned at the lie. For a young girl, Ino could really pick out a lie from anyone. I always tried to be as truthful with her as I could.

"Miki don't lie!" Now the girl named Miki frowned at Ino.

"Ino, since when did you get so boring that you play with just anybody?" Ino looked torn between angry and sad.

"Sakura-chan isn't just anybody, she's my friend! She's smart, fun, nice, and we have a lot in common!" I smiled and could tell Inner was shedding some tears. The other girls looked annoyed.

"Fine. Stay with your freaky friend. Let's go." They left after they did nothing but ruin our mood. Ino looked over to me sadly.

"Sorry they said mean things Sakura-chan...Your not a freak." She said the last part quietly. I patted her head.

"It's okay Ino-chan. I don't care what they say. I only care about what my family and friends say." She smiled brightly at me and hugged me tightly, I smiled and hugged her back.

The rest of the morning went by great, Miki was far from our thoughts as we played until lunch time. All four of us plus Sora, ate lunch together at a small restaurant. We went our separate ways afterwards, but not before promising to meet next week. Madoka was going to visit the bakery since it was on the way and having nothing better to do, I followed her. We talked with Yashiro and some other employees, who I was finally introduced to. And after five minutes of talking with Yashiro, Madoka came to me with a small bag of cookies.

"Here Sakura, a snack. Are you meeting any friends today?" Hmm, now that I thought about it, I could look for Naruto.

"Yeah. May I go find them?" She nodded and handed me the bag. Although small, the bag probably contained around twenty bite sized cookies.

I went around the village looking for Naruto, I was by myself today. Sora had decided to go home and sleep, lazy bird he was when not given a task.

**"Hey, do you think he could be eating?"**

'Yeah, he could be. Might aswell check.' I walked over to the Ichiraku stand and thanked the gods I could see a small lone child sitting on a stool. As I got closer, I noticed it really was him. Being so small, I didn't even reach the flaps hanging ontop.

"Naruto-san?" He choked on his noodles and I ran over and patted his back.

"Are you okay?" He nodded, finally feeling safe to swallow again. I sat on the stool beside him and placed the bag on the counter.

"Are you going to eat?" He asked quietly. I smiled sadly. This could have been the perfect bonding opportunity. I shook my head at his question.

"As much as I would love to, I had just eaten recently. But next time for sure." I added in the last part, hopefully he had gotten the hint. He looked surprised.

"You really want to eat here. A lot of people don't think it tastes good so they don't come." I raised an eyebrow. If only he knew that this ramen stand would become really popular.

"Yeah, the ramen your eating looks great." He suddenly had a big grin on his face that was happier than the ones I had seen previously.

"I know! Ichiraku ramen is the best in the world! No one can make it better!...Oh I mean...that's my opinion." I smiled brightly at the boy who was finally feeling a bit more comfortable around me.

"I'll make sure to try it sometime."

"How about now?" I looked over to the man behind the counter.

"I would love to but I just ate." I said in response to his question.

"Well you can sample it then. Just a small amount would be fine."

"Really? May I? Wait...I didn't bring money." He shook his head and smiled.

"A small sample is on the house." I smiled brightly and nodded.

"Then if its alright with you." He nodded and began to make the ramen. After a few minutes I was placed a small bowl in front of me.

"Thank you very much sir."

"Your welcome kid. And my name is Teuchi." I smiled up at the kind man.

"Nice to meet you Teuchi-san. My name is Sakura Haruno." He chuckled and nodded and then began to clean up his table. I looked down and broke the chop-sticks apart while saying the customary itadakimasu. All the times I ate noodles in the Land of Udon with Madoka had me eating the ramen with grace. My first bite was the deciding factor, no ramen I had ever tasted in Udon could compare, better yet not even the ramen in my other world. I thought Naruto was always making a big deal about ramen but this was really good.

**"This ramen is amazing!"** I agreed with Inner whole heartedly.

"Naruto-san, Teuchi-san this ramen is great!" They both smiled happily.

"Really?! You like it too Sakura-chan!...I mean Sakura-san." He corrected himself quickly with a small blush across his face.

"That's okay Naruto-san. You can call me that. And yes, I think this ramen is really good. I've travelled to the Land of Udon and their ramen doesn't compare!" He smiled brightly and nodded.

"I knew it! Old man your ramen is the best!" Teuchi laughed

"Well it's good to know my ramen is appreciated by another person." he said placing a bowl in front of Naruto.

"Old man?" Teuchi laughed.

"Your favorite, Miso ramen with roasted pork fillet! On the house!" Naruto smiled so wide I though his face must be hurting.

"Thanks old man!" Naruto began to eat his food vigorously, until he remembered he wasn't by himself. He slowed down his eating and smiled at me, while rubbing his head sheepishly. I giggled and continued to finish my food. When we finished eating, I believed Naruto was happy with his full tummy.

'Inner, I feel like I'm forgetting something.'

**"The cookies!"** My eyes travelled to the bag.

'That's right.' I grabbed a hold of the purple bag and untied the pretty pink ribbon around it. I could feel Naruto's curious gaze upon me. When the bag was opened I noticed my earlier assumptions were correct. The cookies were bite size and there was a lot of them. Turning towards Naruto, I slid the bag to be in the middle of us on the counter.

"You want some cookies? My mother made them." He looked at the cookies like a child who was given the most amazing gift ever.

"Can I really?" I nodded my head and took one for myself.

"There really good! Ne Teuchi-san, you can have one too!" He smiled kindly down at me. They both took one and munched down on it.

"Sakura-chan these are amazing!" Naruto said as he savored the cookie.

"These are good! Sakura-chan these taste like the cookies I get Ayame. You said you were a Haruno, right? Is your mother the owner of that bakery?" I nodded and smiled.

"Yeah, they make really good pastries." I was beginning to think that bakery was really popular. We heard footsteps coming from the room in the back. A child stepped through the door, she had brown, waist length straight hair. She wore all white and looked about Itachi's age.

"Ayame! Welcome our customers!" I remember her now, she was also nice to Naruto in the anime/manga. She bowed and smiled.

"Welcome to Ichiraku Ramen!" She said with a soft, young voice. I smiled and waved in a friendly manner. Naruto, on the other hand wasn't so calm.

"Hey Ayame-chan! How was school?" She smiled at Naruto.

"Good Naruto. Did you eat already?" Naruto nodded at her.

"Yeah! It was as great as always!" Ayame smiled at his regular response.

"Ayame, Naruto brought in a new cutomer for us!" Ayame looked over to me.

"Hello! I'm Sakura Haruno. It's nice to meet you Ayame-san." She smiled happily.

"I'm glad more people are noticing the restaurant!"

"It's really good. I'll make sure to come again! Naruto-san, you can have more cookies. You too Teuchi-san. Ayame-san would you like some?" She looked down at the cookies and nodded.

"Ayame-chan, try them! There so good!" We all took a cookie and ate.

"It's my favorite cookies!" She told her father who nodded.

"Her mother own's the bakery." Realization struck her.

"That's right! How could I not notice it before!" She said referring to my last name and the bakery's name.

"Sakura-chan, are you sure we can eat them? Your not going to give them to some other friends?" I shook my head no.

"No, you can all finish them. I'm not going to meet anyone else today." I was surprised how happy they looked when they ate simple cookies, though I could understand, they were really good. We finished the cookies while we talked together and got to know each other. I think today was the most Naruto has ever talked to me. He kept on talking about anything and everything but his conversations were almost always about food. I didn't mind though, it was fun talking to them. For the first time since I met him, I finally felt like I had gotten somewhere. I was ready to take this a step forward, from friendly stranger's to good friends.

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**Well this chapter was a bit longer then the last. Have you guys noticed how the chapters posted on the weekends are longer? Well I can't seem to post really long chapters during the week because of school and other stuff. But I try to make readers happy by making them interesting even if the chapters are short. Hopefully you liked it and continue to read and review!**


	15. Chapter 15

**Authors Note:** Hello readers! This chapter is for a lot of Itachi fans which I have read a lot of. One thing before you continue to read. I have no idea how old Shisui is but I know he's older than Itachi. And since this is Fanfiction I'm making up his age along with other things from the original Naruto. His age won't be to far from Itachi's so it can help my plot. Hope you enjoy and continue to read and review!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Getting Caught**

**Sakura's POV**

It has been three day since I ate ramen with Naruto. I have been doing training non-stop on the days I didn't meet anyone. My chakra lessons were going great and so were my new katas. My new fighting style was the one I was struggling with at the moment. All three dances I have completed are completely different, and the same goes for the one I'm currently working on. Kioshi, Chouko and I had thought we could create a style for each dance, and although probable; in a real battle there would be to many openings. So I had an idea to combine all of them and form my style, but with the differences between them, it was hard to combine them. In the end we had all decided it would be best for me to learn the last few dances and then we could try to combine them.

On the fourth day I was so bored of reading about the human body and chakra manipulations that I told Madoka I was going out. I tried not to go out to much, so they wouldn't think I was going to slack off on my training. But I needed to get out of the house and find someone. It was still early when I left home, too early; so I went to a training ground and trained. I had worn comfortable clothes for practice. Some black sweat pants with ninja shoes and a red tee shirt. My hair was parted on the left and I made a dutch braid with my bangs to get it out of my face.

The weights on my limbs almost felt like they tripled. It was hard to get back into routine when my weights constantly changed but I managed to put up with the weight. After getting through some stretches to get accustomed to the new weight, I practiced my dance forms. Finishing all three dances and what I've learned about the earth dance made me feel accomplished. After the dance forms were done, I would always move onto the katas. With my eyes closed and body moving according to what it remembered, I allowed my mind to wonder. Practicing multitasking was hard at first. It would make my focus lose and I would have to start all over; but now, my body felt like it moved on its own. From all those hours of painstakingly working on my katas, it had finally paid off. I could be having a conversation with Inner about a completely different topic or work on my chakra and my katas would go uninterrupted.

I stopped after three hours of training, deeming it enough for the time being. I straightened up after the last stance, hearing the bones pop as I stretched out. I heard clapping behind me. That was one problem with my multitasking. I would get too focused on my katas and chakra that I couldn't sense my surroundings.

"That was great!" I turned around to face the person who's voice I didn't recognize. It was actually two people...not just any normal people, it was two Uchiha's.

Itachi was the easiest to be recognized first, while the other one I hadn't personally met before, but he was still easy to know with the knowledge I possessed. Shisui Uchiha, best friend to Itachi. He too had a sad fate but what am I talking about, everyone in the anime/manga had a sad past or future. I bowed slightly towards them.

"Good morning Itachi-san and..." he looked surprised that I knew Itachi but soon smiled and waved.

"Hey! I'm Shisui Uchiha, Ita-kuns best friend! Nice to meet you!" I nodded and smiled, also noticing the tiny glare from Itachi.

"Good morning and its nice to meet you too Shisui-san." His smile widened as they approached me. And I just couldn't help but stare. They were both so different, sure they were both way younger than I saw them in the anime/manga but still...Itachi was young and had short hair that was slightly shorter than mine. He was also missing his pronounced tear-troughs. Shisui looked somewhat the same. His hair was still shorter than Itachi's and was unkempt, he looked to be around his teenage years, if I had to guess maybe 14. But all was to be expected since we were all really young and they didn't really mention much about the characters lives in the anime/manga.

"You speak well kid and your katas are pretty good. How old are you?" I had to look up to meet his eyes, considering my shortness.

"Three, almost four in two months." He showed his surprise better than Itachi did.

"Really?! Itachi, how old were you when you started doing katas?"

"Four." His father must have decided to trained him because of the war going on. And it probably didn't take him long to master them, especially since he graduated early. Shisui whistled in amazement and looked back down at me. He leaned down while placing his hands on his hips.

"That's pretty amazing kid!" I tilted my head to my right as I looked up at him.

"My name is Sakura Haruno." He tilted his head to the side imitating me. He then grinned broadly and laughed as he patted my head. I sighed, as he ruffled my hair, messing it up in the process.

"Shisui." Shisui looked back to see Itachi giving him a blank stare. Shisui stopped patting my head.

"Okay okay." I frowned and looked between them.

'Did I miss something?' I felt Inner shrug.

**"I don't know. There seems to have been a silent conversation between them."**

'Hmm, it sure seems that way.' I commented as I continued to stare between the two.

**"But hey, even though he looks and acts different then the other Uchiha's, he's still kinda cute!"**

'Do you ever stop thinking about boys?' She rolled her eyes at me.

**"Well of course I can't, not with knowledge that most of them, if not all, get hotter in the future!"**

I wasn't able to ponder on the thought any further, for Itachi brought me out of my musings.

"Sakura-san, I'm sorry for Shisui's odd behavior." I smiled and shook my head.

"Its fine." Shisui turned back around to face me.

"So kid are you entering the academy early?" I blinked owlishly up at him. I hadn't even thought about that, but of course, that is out of the question. I have to get into team Kakashi. He raised an eyebrow down at me.

"Your not?"

"No, and there's no doubt that I'm not." He looked surprised.

"Oh? Why not?" I shrugged and patted down the hair I saw sticking up.

"Its not my time yet." He looked over to Itachi. They seemed to be sharing another secret conversation. They turned back towards me confused.

"You know it's okay for you to go in early right?" I nodded up to him.

"I know." Hopefully he just changed the topic because I really didn't want to be talking about it.

"Hmm, well okay then. So what are you working on now?" I looked up to see the sky was just now turning its lovely blue, and the suns rays going through the leaves. It must barely be around seven. I looked back down to the two Uchiha's.

'Should we tell them?'

**"I don't see why not."** I guess it wouldn't hurt.

"Weapons." He looked around skeptically noticing that I had none with me.

'What's wrong with everyone not believing me. Is it really that hard to believe.'

**"Let's see...your a three year old girl who has pink hair, short and looks so innocent and nice you couldn't hurt a fly. I can see why its pretty hard to believe."** I frowned.

'Well, when you say it like that, of course it sounds strange.'

"Are you going back home to get them?" I shook my head and pointed to a bag at the bass of a tree. It seems even more unbelievable when Madoka just had to pick a light pink bag. I walked over to it and kneeled beside it. I unzipped it and took out two scrolls. One was the one Haruki gave mew to practice our lessons, while the other one is just a collection of extras for practice. I had enough to last me a while. Being able to use my chakra was probably one of my most useful skills. With it, I could place it on my weights, walk on walls, open and seal minor scrolls.

I concentrated on placing a small amount of chakra on the tips of my fingers and then transferring it to the scrolls. They unrolled and Shisui and Itachi stepped up to observe the array of weapons, Shisui whistled in appreciation.

"These are good weapons! Do you mind...?" I suppose he was referring to my weapons. I shook my head and saw him take his preferred ones. He chose two tanto's. If I remembered correctly he was skilled at using them. He gripped them and began to do acouple of katas with them.

His katas were different then mine. For the obvious fact that he was using the Uchiha katas that they were mostly taught since little. I could tell he felt confident in his movements as he performed them. Between Kioshi's and Haruki's katas, I felt better with Kioshi's, Haruki's were always more complex, so they could incorporate the weapons. Shisui stopped after three minutes and smiled down at me.

"These are pretty good. Can you use all of these?" This almost felt like interrogation, though he was pretty nice about it.

"Hmm, most of them. I haven't practiced with some yet." He placed the tanto's back down and looked around at the others.

"Which one's are you practicing with today?"

"Shisui." He turned back to his silent companion.

"I'm only curious Itachi! Besides, we have nothing else to do. Might as well give little Sakura-chan some company." I raised an eyebrow at him.

'He's awfully friendly and trusting.' He turned back after Itachi sighed in defeat.

"So which is it?" I looked down and took a hold of some kunai.

"Today is precision practice." Even though I was practicing the basics with everything else. Today was actually my first day to ever practice with kunai. I had a general idea from Haruki's instructions that I had pre-read. I was actually only worried about hitting the target...my sense of directions were a bit...bad.

"Is this the first time you've practiced with throwing kunai?" He asked as he took a hold of one and began to twirl it with his finger. I watched it spin and nodded towards his question.

"That's right, although its basic shinobi training I still have yet to practice." He crossed his arms and nodded.

"Well, you want me to teach ya!" I raised an eyebrow and side glanced at Itachi.

"What about your training?" He ruffled my hair, messing it up again. I sighed ignoring his childish treatment.

"Don't worry! Itachi and I have enough time to teach you the basics first!" He took ahold of all the targets. While he did that, I turned over to face Itachi.

"I'm really sorry to be taking up your training time." He looked down at me and smiled, it wasnt big like shisui's but it held a gentle charm to it.

"It's fine Sakura-san. Helping you will bring a change to our dull routine." I smiled up at him and nodded.

"Thank you then, for taking the time to teach me." He nodded.

"There all done!" I turned around and looked at shisui's empty hands and then leaned over to look behind him. All five targets were pinned to a tree.

**"Since when did he do all that?"** I thought about it and then remembered who we were in the presence of.

'It is Shunshin no Shisui, which reminds me Inner we still have a lot to learn.' she nodded inside my head.

"Hehe, wondering how I did that so fast?" I looked over to him and smiled knowingly.

"You used shunshin." He looked astounded, unlike Itachi.

"Wow, your pretty smart kid!" He then proceeded to laugh and mess up my hair even more. I didn't even fix it, not caring how I looked. if he was doing it to test my patience he was going to have to try harder. He was soon leading me to a position closer to the targets.

"Here, first watch me, then you try, ok?" I nodded and backed away to give him space. My gaze zeroed in on his stance first. I observed the way he positioned his legs then his torso and finally how he held the kunai. He had a very loose and opened stance until in the blink of an eye his muscles tightened and he was firing one kunai after the next. In the span of three seconds he had hit all five targets perfectly. He turned and looked at me as I observed his hits.

"Did you see how awesome that was?!" I raised an eyebrow at him. Honestly, his personality was so different to the other Uchiha's. He reminds me a lot of Naruto. He looked at me expectantly and I suppose he was waiting for the usual praise he got from children.

"That was really fast." He grinned it seemed he was already used to my calm personality.

**"Only when you don't act like a child."** I smiled at both Inner and Shisui.

'That's true, but there's a situations that calls for different attitudes.' I focused back to the babbling Shisui.

"-and then, once you master it, you'll become an amazing kunoichi!" I really did miss his whole conversation.

"Alright here, do it like I just told you." My eyes widened a fraction. Great. I was so focused with Inner's conversation that I heard nothing of what he said. He handed me a single kunai. I sighed quietly. I looked over to them and noticed that they were also staring at me...well that was obvious but they had a funny glint in their eyes. Almost as if they knew something I didn't. What surprised me the most was, not only Shisui but Itachi as well had that glint. Nothing could end well when he showed he knew something others didn't. I breathed in trying to ignore them, though Inner wasn't helping in that department. I walked over to where Shisui was standing earlier and before I took a stance, I closed my eyes and felt the kunai in my right hand. Since Shisui was obviously stronger and much more experienced, maybe if I applied a bit of chakra I could use it to my advantage. Haruki had always told me that the weapon was an extension of ourselves. And I remember the time Naruto was also doing something similar along with that monk named Sora. It was hard for Naruto because he didn't have perfect chakra control and he had too much chakra to be able to control. I, on the other hand have only a small amount of chakra that I am confident I have a good control of.

I smiled feeling like I could really pull this off. With my eyes closed I expertly moved my body in the stance mimicking Shisui's thanks to Inner's impeccable remembrance. Inner and I both concentrated on my chakra as we travelled it through our body and out of the tenketsu on our palm. Slowly, for it was our first time, incased the kunai in our chakra. We only used a small amount to cover it with a thin layer on top. I slowly fluttered my eyelids open, focusing solely on the target and my chakra flow; everything else was tuned out. I looked at the target as I prepared to throw. Surely from such close distance I couldn't miss...right?

I took in one last breath and did just as I saw Shisui before, tightened my muscles and threw the Kunai across the field towards the target. It felt like I was placed in slow motion. From tightening my muscles to feeling myself powerfully throw it. I felt it slip from my fingers with an extra strong burst of chakra I had let out accidentally. All of that still seemed okay, it was after it left my fingers when the disaster occured. I saw it head towards the target and then the kunai swirled and curve towards the far right, completely missing the mark.

That wasn't even the worst part. The kunai which was swiftly soring through the air had stopped only when it went through a tree trunk and lodged itself in the ground behind it. Apparently, the accidental slip up of extra chakra wasn't really okay. It didn't explode the tree which was...good, but it ripped through the whole left side of it knocking it on its side which was...bad.

**"Oops..."**

"Yeah, oops." I said quietly, soon after realizing that I wasn't in fact alone, winced and looked behind me. The happy smiles and secret glints were gone and replaced by looks of sheer surprise. I glanced back to the tree and stared in amazement. If a little extra chakra did that, I could barely imagine what would happen if I hadn't held back. I was brought out of my musings by the sound of a throat clearing.

I turned back and looked at both of them.

"Well...you were a bit...off," I stared at him blankly...a bit? I was about to respond when a cry was heard up above. Looking up we noticed that it was Sora. Extending out my arm, Sora came down and perched on it. Attatched to the leg that held no anklet, he had a note. As I untied and read it, I realized that it was a note from Madoka. She was asking to come by the bakery later to get some snacks, I looked up to the silent Uchiha's.

'We could take this chance and leave before they ask questions.' Inner tilted her head.

**"I don't know...what if they ask anyways?"** As I pretended to read the note, I answered her question.

'I'm sure they won't...at least not right now. Besides they don't know what the note says.' Inner shrugged.

**"I guess you can try."** I looked up and smiled, hopefully it would be convincing.

"I have to go see my mother." Shisui smiled and nodded.

"Alright, let me help clean up." In a blink of an eye he was standing beside me with all the kunai and targets. We re-sealed them and I stood up with Sora on my shoulder and the pink bag on my back. I was glad they didn't ask questions.

"Okay, well have a nice day."

"Wait, we'll walk with you, right Itachi?" We looked back to him, and he just had to comply.

'Crap, now what?'

**"Well as long as they don't ask anything...what am I talking about! Shisui asks so many freaking questions!"** I smiled and nodded reluctantly. The walk towards the bakery was awkward. Shisui said nothing and Itachi...well, he never says anything. I could do nothing but try to seem as nonchalant as possible, how I looked on the outside...well I wouldn't know. By the time we came to the familiar street, I was practically thanking the gods. I didn't think I could handle it any longer before going insane. I felt like my movements were being watched but it wasn't like the stares I usually ignored daily. It was the ones you can't help feel uncomfortable with, the ones filled with questions and suspicion.

"Thank you for escorting me." I said as I bowed slightly. Shisui grinned and laughed while he ruffled my hair.

"No problem kid! It was fun teaching you, maybe we can do it again sometime!"

"Yeah...sure." I looked over to Itachi who was still very quiet.

"Shisui is right, Sakura-san. We should train again, perhaps with Sasuke there." There wasn't really anything else I could do but nod and smile.

"Then it's settled, how about this weekend?! Yeah! why don't you come over to the Uchiha compound!" My smile faultered slightly.

"Uhm...sure. I'll just ask my mother if I can." He walked passed me and through the doors. Where the heck was he going?!

"That's great! Let's ask her together!" I followed after him worried that Madoka would say yes. I cursed my luck when she appeared on her own going down the stairs.

"Oh Sakura, you came early." I winced, curse my luck! She just had to bring that fact up. I saw Itachi look down at me not even surprised. Of course he could pick out a lie as good as Ino, if not more.

"Oh? Hello boys." They bowed and greeted Madoka as they talked about the day we had together. They surprised me when they didn't tell her about the tree.

"Of course she can! Sakura, don't worry you can go and train with them whenever you guys want, but I have to warn you boys. Sakura's like a sponge, she absorbs a lot of information, so don't be stunned if she gets it on her first attempt." I wanted to run and hide. Madoka just had to brag about my training. These people were not the right people to brag to.

**"Why are you so worried?"**

'Because, if they see my skills this early, surely they'll want to tell father that he should enroll us early.' Her eyes widened in realization.

**"We won't be with Ino-chan, Naruto or worse...Sasuke-kun!"** I nodded at Inner's comment.

"Did you hear that Sakura-chan?! Make sure to come by this weekend okay?!" I nodded, not being able to do anything else to prevent it. I walked with them towards the door, after Madoka had given them pasteries to take home. Shisui had made sure to completly ruin my hair, plus constantly remind me to come on Saturday. Itachi was the final surprise. After Shisui had messed up my hair and walked outside as if he had done nothing wrong; Itachi stepped up and patted down my hair, apologizing for his friends behavior. I told him again it was fine, and that I would see them on Saturday. They soon left and I was allowed to relax again, but as soon as I remembered I would have to meet the clan, I felt trapped somehow. There was nothing I could do about it now, I had accepted and Madoka had been my last resort but alas, that had ended equally as bad.

'Now they know I lied about my strength, and the note, and my reluctance to except their invitation.'

**"All we can do now is go on normally with our days until Saturday."** I sighed.

'Oh I can't wait...' She frowned.

**"Your dripping with sarcasm, but at least I get to see some cuties on Saturday!"** I groaned and face palmed myself. There was no way Saturday was going to end well.

* * *

**Alright, another character meets Sakura! If you haven't noticed I'm making Sakura meet someone different every chapter. It will go like that for awhile and then there will be a time skip which takes us closer to the massacre. Hopefully you enjoyed and continue to review! I enjoy reading all of them and it helps me see which characters I should make her meet next.**


	16. Chapter 16

**Author's Note:** Hey dear readers! Thanks again for all the support. I would have never imagined to receive so many reviews, you guys are just so nice! It has come to my attention that a lot of you really enjoy reading my story and may be worried that I'll stop. Don't worry, you should all know that I enjoy writing this and wont be stopping any time soon. So I hope that calms your worried thoughts.

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Memorial Stone**

**Sakura's POV**

I stood in the same place for three minutes. Shisui and Itachi having left a long time ago. Once I figured out that I couldn't do anything about the situation any longer, I walked over to a table near a window. I sighed and looked around the bakery, Since it was early, I figured there would be more people. I guess I wouldn't know, this was only like the fourth time I've ever been here.

"Here Sakura." Madoka said as she came towards me with a small bag.

"Are they cookies?" I asked her once she set the bag in front of me. She nodded and smiled.

"Their different from the last ones. Oh and here take some money in case you want to buy something; but make sure not to stay out too late ok." I nodded and smiled up to Madoka.

"Okay mommy!" I said as I gave Madoka a hug and placed the money in my pink bag. I then stepped out of the bakery and closed my eyes and did a quick chakra scan. My eyes snapped open when I sensed Naruto nearby at the end of my sensing limit. I ran all the way there, momentarily forgetting about Sora on my shoulder. He was so light compared to the weights. He jumped off and flew beside me. Sprinting towards Naruto took a good three minutes. He kept moving and making me have to run faster. It almost felt like he was running away, but from what...or better yet, who?

**"What if he's getting picked on?!"** Inner shrieked inside my head. With that last thought, I ran faster. It was already established that looking for Naruto was hard. That boy could hide. I found myself nearing the location where his chakra felt the strongest. We were still on the streets and there was a small crowd of people in the center. As I felt for Naruto's chakra, I found him trapped inside the mob of people. There was also an unrecognizable chakra source nearby. Trying to locate the source, I found it leading me to an alleyway. The source felt tiny, not the kind that was felt on kids. No, it felt suppressed as if it was being compacted on purpose.

**"Do you think it's a skilled ninja?"** Inner asked.

'Maybe its one of his ANBU guards.' I answered her question. I heard shouting and movement up ahead.

"Why are you even alive!" Said one of the many villagers who encircled Naruto.

"How many times do we have to chase you away, demon?!" An old woman shouted. There were many different insults being said. Ranging in a variety of cruelty. Naruto's chakra fluctuated in frightened waves. Tightening my fist and narrowing my eyes I took a deep breath.

"Hey!" I shouted with my high-pitched voice to gain their attention. The angry and scared chakra stopped momentarily and changed to wonder. I saw them turn to look at me. I saw Naruto peek through the adults legs. His eyes widened and I could see the surprise in them.

"...I'm sorry little girl! We didn't see you there. Are you lost?" Asked the woman who had earlier called Naruto a demon. I frowned not caring whether I was being rude.

"No. I'm here for my friend." I said with absolute resolve and smiled warmly towards the small child. Naruto's eyes widened and the few unshed tears that he was fighting back finally fell.

"Oh, tell us about him and we'll help." I smiled and closed my eyes. An image appeared in my mind of Naruto eating ramen with a big smile on his face.

"My friend...he has pretty bright blonde hair, beautiful sapphire colored eyes that sparkle when happy. He loves ramen more than anyone I know, which will probably become his obsession one day, and his name is Naruto Uzumaki." I opened my eyes after finishing up his description. I looked over to Naruto, he was sobbing, but he didn't show his face as he continuously rubbed at his eyes with his sleeve. The villagers faces however, only returned to their vicious annoyance with the boy.

"That demon child?! Little girl don't associate with his kind!" I narrowed my eyes at her demand and walked towards Naruto. Ignoring the villagers as I walked past them. I stopped when I was in arm's length away from Naruto. As much as he tried to stop his tears, they fell endlessly down his face.

"...sniff...Sakura-chan...I-" He stopped his sentence when I placed a hand in front of him to make him stop.

"Not here, Naruto-san." My words seemed to cause him some confusion, for his brows furrowed. I began to walk around him and when he didn't move, I poked him in the arm.

"Come on." He soon followed me and thankfully his tears had stopped so the villagers wouldn't be able to see his face. Every time I looked back to make sure Naruto wasn't falling behind, inner kept insisting that he looked like a lost puppy. I shook my head and told her to be serious in such situations. She would pout and deny the fact that she was not being serious.

I lead Naruto all the way to a training field. Earlier in the week, when I was walking around the village; I took note of the commonly used fields, as well as the more secluded ones. No one would find us for a while. Just in case I told Inner to be on the look out for chakra's nearby. This was another thing we were working on. Instead of just me training, we decided that just like Inner's secret ability, we would enhance her skills more. Now we could both sense chakra. When inner or I both sensed without the others help, our distance decreased by half; but it was perfect for short distance sensing such as now. When I reached the center, I turned to face Naruto seriously. He looked at me as well; but unlike mine his eyes held hurt, confusion and hope.

**"There's someone in a few trees away."** Inner informed me. I smiled at both of them.

'Thanks. It's probably that guard.' I commented. Ignoring the hidden ninja for now, I focused back on Naruto. Before I even got to say anything, he beat me to it.

"Why?...I...Why are you so nice to me?" His voice was filled with confusion and hurt. I felt like I was having a déjà vu moment.

"Naruto-san-" he cut me off before I could finish.

"I left you!...So why do you keep being so nice?!" he shouted at me, wanting answers for my actions. I suppose he was referring to our second meeting when he ditched me. I knew that day would be brought up some day, I'm glad its today. I was ready to be acknowledged as his friend.

"What's wrong with being nice?" I said to him just as I did to Gaara. He frowned and was about to say something, but I stopped him this time.

"Please let me finish Naruto-san...I'm nice to you because I consider you my friend." That's all I could say before he intruded again.

"But I didn't do anything to be called your friend!...I've been avoiding you...because...because I'm scared..." He ended his sentence quietly. So it was hard for me to find him; because he did it on purpose. But how did he know where I would be looking for him? I decided to ask that later.

"Naruto-san, you saved my life the day we first met. You allowed me to be introduced to your favorite food and your friends. We've played together, laughed together, Naruto-san, your my friend." I told him sincerely.

"I don't know why the villagers treat you like that, and I'm sure you don't either; but as my friend, I can't stand back and do nothing. So whether you like it or not or don't see me as a friend yet, If I see that you're getting bullied, I will stop it." I informed him.

He looked at me and without his notice a few tears fell down. He soon realized and tried to wipe his tears away quickly. He squatted down and sobbed quietly after he gave up on hiding his feelings. I walked over to him and patted his head gently. I waited patiently until he finished crying. After five minutes, his sniffling stopped and he wiped his tears away. He looked up and I pulled my hand back to my side.

"...Thanks Sakura-chan..." He thanked me with a quiet, timid voice. I smiled kindly down at him and nodded.

"Ne Naruto-san, let's go eat some ramen, my treat." His facial expression shined with happiness at my suggestion. He stood up slowly and I saw him hesitate for a minute. Either my observation skills had gotten better with Madoka's lessons or Naruto was just that easy to read. He always looked down to the ground and his hands had to be grabbing something when he was nervous. I sighed and poked him in the arm.

"Let's go Naruto-san." I said as he looked up and nodded. Even though I was short, Naruto was actually smaller than me. I looked around and noticed Sora had perched himself on a branch near the edge.

"Wait here Naruto-san." I told him as I made my way over towards Sora.

'Inner, where did you sense the chakra?' I asked as I kept my eyes locked on Sora.

**"Their actually two trees behind Sora, three branches up."** She informed me as she continued to sense the person.

"Hey Sora. Come one, let's go eat." I raised my arm for him to take and as he flew down to it, I looked behind him at the general direction Inner had said. As expected there was no way that I could see them if they didn't want me to.

**"They noticed you staring."** Inner informed. I turned around normally to face an amazed Naruto.

'How can you tell?' I asked her, quiet curious at her knowledge. She shrugged and held her chin.

**"I felt their chakra shift slightly."** Inner said as I walked over to Naruto and smiled.

'Do you know what that means?' I asked her quite impressed with her. She shook her head at my question.

'That means your chakra sensing has increased in sensitivity. Most likely you will get even better at sensing than I will be able to.' I told her what I thought and she smiled happily.

**"Really?! You think so?!"** She asked in surprise.

'Yeah.' I answered her honesty. Looking over to Naruto, I noticed he was staring intently at Sora. I smiled at his poorly concealed desire to pet Sora. Children from this world and my last were always easy to make happy.

"Naruto-san you haven't met my friend yet. This is Sora, my messenger bird." I extended my arm towards him and Sora flapped his wings in a cheerful manner. Naruto grinned and reached out to pet Sora. I could see the childish joy he got from petting Sora, but it soon turned into embarrassment when his stomach growled.

"Are you hungry?" I asked with a knowing smile. He rubbed the back of his head, while he nodded. I was about to say we should go eat, when my stomach also growled. All three of us looked down as it did and then laughed, well Sora just looked amused. It was weird to see animals act differently from how they did in my world, but I suppose it's not so hard to believe when some of them could even talk.

"I guess I'm hungry too. Lets go eat Naruto-san." I said, he nodded more confidently this time and we made our way towards Ichiraku. All the way towards the ramen stand, multiple eyes stared at us. And most of the time they were actually directed towards me. I ignored most of them but when Inner or I sensed someone approach, I would direct a warning glare towards them. I had slightly thought it would be a waste of time to glare at them, when my face may not even look threatening enough. But I was pleasantly surprised when they actually stepped back. I was very pleased when they had received my warning to back off.

We arrived at the stand and Inner and I both noticed the guard from before was still watching. There wasn't a problem with that, only that today was the first time I had felt the person stay with Naruto for this time of the day. Perhaps it's because of me? I shook my head and walked inside. Fine, I didn't care if he stayed as long as he didn't say I had to get away from Naruto. Besides, he can't. If he could say that to me, why couldn't he have said that to the villagers?

"Hey Naruto! Oh? And you brought Sakura-chan too." Teuchi exclaimed happily. I smiled and bowed slightly.

"Good afternoon Teuchi-san." I said nicely as I walked up to sit on a stool. Sora perched on the stool beside me and I also took off the bag and placed it on the same seat he perched on.

"Hey old man! Is Ayame-chan still in school?!" Asked Naruto quite loudly. Teuchi nodded and grinned down at him.

"Yeah, she'll be here soon. The usual Naruto?" Teuchi asked as he began to prepare things for the food. Naruto looked uncertainly at me. I nodded encouragingly and looked back down to the menu.

"Yeah old man!" He said happily. I smiled discreetly down at the menu as I listened to him chatter. Once I placed my order, I looked over to Naruto who was sitting rather quietly compared to a few minutes ago.

"What's wrong, Naruto-san?" I asked as I turned my body fully in his direction, giving him my full attention. He rubbed his small hands together in a nervous way as he continued to think.

"I've...never really had a friend...so I don't know how to act." He told me honestly. I smiled at his childish worries.

"Your friends with Teuchi-san and Ayame-san, aren't you? Just be yourself, there's no need for you to act a certain way, in fact just keep being your cheerful self." He blinked away new fresh tears and managed to give me a wide sincere smile. We ate our ramen, while we talked about things we liked. We were finally talking about things other than food. After we ate, I showed him that I had brought more cookies. Both Teuchi and Naruto both ate happily once I told them I had brought them specifically to eat with them. Ayame came in when we had started eating the cookies and conversing about which pastry we liked best. We greeted her in our own distinct ways and soon she joined us in our conversation and ate cookies with us.

When we finished eating, I paid and then Naruto, Sora and I left to go play some games before I had to leave. We played different games which included Sora. Naruto had finally relaxed around me and I felt he trusted me now. I had gotten even happier when he gave me his famous dream speech. He had looked happy when he saw that I didn't laugh or ridicule his dream. I told him that I too wanted to be a ninja and he was ecstatic to learn we would be in the academy together. If there was ever a chance for me to go in early, he had blown the thought far, far away. I would hate to leave him all on his own.

When the sun went down, I told him I had to get home but that we should get together and play again. He agreed instantly and left to his apartment while I headed for my home. On the way I met up with Chouko, she was heading to my house so we walked together. When we arrived we began to practice the earth dance. By the end of the day we had almost finished the whole dance. We would only need one more practice for us to finish it, she said we would go into the last dance from the Land of Lightning when finished.

Madoka came in after Chouko left and surprisingly Kioshi came home early too. We ate dinner while talking about our day. After dinner I studied and then took a shower. That night I slept very happily, deciding to not think about the weekend and only the trust I had gained from Naruto.

**~Two Days Later~**

I woke up Friday feeling the pain in my bones from practice the days before. I sat in bed massaging my limbs and planning out my schedule for the day. The past two days were filled with training. Kioshi had been given the days off and so we spent them together. We had literally trained all day, only resting to eat and the hour and a half for the food to digest; but even then I still had to study. I didn't see anyone other than the usual, meaning Madoka, Kioshi, Chouko, and Mari who came by.

Today Kioshi had to go back to work but I was instructed to practice more, not like I wasn't going to anyway. I made my bed and brushed my teeth and washed my face quickly. I made my regular dutch braid on my hair and dressed in dark blue sweat-pants and a light blue tee-shirt, along with blue ninja sandals. I ate breakfast that Madoka had made and then left the house.

**"Where are you going?"** Inner asked, noticing the change in direction.

'Today we're going somewhere new.' I told her as I looked at the sky that was still dark and ready for the sun to take its place. I soon arrived to the memorial stone that was located near the third training ground. This was on the other side of the training ground where team Kakashi first had their bell test. I went up to the black, kunai-like structure and kneeled in front of it. I placed my hands together, palms touching.

**"Are you going to pray?"** Inner asked curiously.

'Yes. I'm giving a prayer to all of the people who have their names engraved here. Then I'm going to speak to Naruto's parents.' I answered her and before she could ask me anything else I began to read each name in my mind. When I finished reading all the names that were on all sides of the stone, I closed my eyes and said a prayer for them. Once finished I fluttered my eyes opened.

**"There's someone here!"** Inner informed me as soon as she sensed someone.

'Thanks.' I said as I scanned the stone once more to find the names I wanted. I really wanted to say this out loud but the one nearby was most likely Kakashi, so I decided against it. I also knew that technically they were already dead but also had a part of their chakra sealed inside Naruto. Minato knew of what was happening around Naruto, since he referenced it during the invasion of Pain when he spoke to Naruto. And although I knew all that, I still wanted to do this because it just felt right somehow.

'Now that I'm actually here, I don't know what to say. I had even thought about it too.' I said trying to think of what to say.

**"Well, lets start by saying our name! Hello Naruto's mom and dad we're Naruto's friend Sakura Haruno. Well, I'm Sakura while she's technically Kazumi Yukimura!"** Inner explained happily. I raised an eyebrow at her way of talking to the dead. I chuckled quietly and shook my head.

'That's right, I'm Kazumi Yukimura and something happened to make us come together, but we're not here to talk about us. We're here to talk about Naruto, your son.' I said as I closed my eyes.

**"Yeah! Your son Naruto is so cute! And I've already seen how he becomes when he gets older! As his parents you should be proud for what he will achieve!"** Inner informed.

'Naruto, growing up without parents must have been very difficult, but I know the Hokage is trying to make him have an easier time. Inner and I will also help keep Naruto safe and happy. The future I saw for him and his friends was not the one I think you would have wanted. That's why Inner and I will do our best to make it better, so your efforts as loving parents wont be wasted. Unfortunately, some things must happen, while others should not, but we're going to at least make sure it'll end up for the better.' I said, opening my eyes to stare at their names.

**"We'll make sure to make things turn out differently!"** Inner said. I dropped my hands and stood up allowing the soft wind that had gusted through to ruffle my hair and clothes. The sun that had finally appeared was casting a beautiful glow down upon the stone, warming up my body with its warm rays.

_**"We promise."**_Inner and I both spoke out simultaneously our promise of a life time. The wind picked up and the sun spread out from the stone to incase the whole village with it's morning rays. I smiled at the actions of nature, somehow knowing deep inside that they had heard us. I turned away from the stone and walked away from the grounds, not caring whether Kakashi followed or stayed, we would eventually meet anyway.

I went over to a different training ground and followed through with my regular schedule. Once I completed the exercises and katas, I went ahead and practiced throwing kunai. I tried not to think about what would happen tomorrow and focus on training, but my thoughts would always circle back to it. After missing the seventh kunai, I decided to think it over with Inner.

'Ne, what do you think will happen tomorrow?' I asked as I walked across the field to retrieve the fallen kunai.

**"I honestly don't know; because we can't just be going for practice."** She said, I nodded in agreement.

'Yeah. I'm getting a feeling they will ask questions. If they don't, Fugaku will and we have to get on his good side if we ever wish to do something about the massacre.' I said while picking up the first kunai.

**"That's right! Hey, do you know if he's already planning the coup?"** I stopped my hand before it reached the last kunai.

'Hmm, I'm not entirely sure, but I think he might be considering it. I don't think the thought completely settles in until later. We have only four years to change his mind, although that may seem like a lot of time; I have learned to not push my luck with these sort of things. It's best to have time left over than to have no time at all to change things.' I said and finished picking up the kunai.

**"Yeah let's earn his trust first."** She said and I shook my head.

'No, first we gain his attention. He seems to have high expectations of people, so we have to gain his attention; but only enough for him to tolerate us being friends with his family. We don't want him to send us to the academy early.' I said as I made my way back to the front of the targets.

I positioned myself in different ways to see if I could get a better angle, but nothing seemed to work. After the fourth time collecting the fallen kunai I had decided to stop and practice something else. When I was picking up all the kunai, I sensed a chakra nearby. It was definitely a child and they must be training to be ninja, because civilians didn't really come into the training grounds. After a few moments of waiting, a girl stepped into the field. The girl was young, probably a year older than me. She had short hair like mine, but instead of pink, hers was a lovely warm brown. Her short bangs covered her forehead and she wore a cute dark blue Chinese dress with light blue linings and leggings. Her flats where the same blue as her dress.

"Hello! I didn't think someone would be here!" She said in surprise. I smiled and shook my head at her.

"Sorry, were you going to practice?" I asked as I walked over to set the kunai on the opened scroll.

"Yeah, but you don't have to pack up. I'll go somewhere else!" I tilted my head in her direction.

"No. I was finished for the day anyway." She nodded and timidly came over. She looked at the weapons below me and her face glowed with awe.

"Wow! You have amazing top grade weapons!" She exclaimed happily.

"My grandfather gave them to me. Do you want to try them out?" I asked her noticing her excited reaction.

"May I?!" She asked unbelievingly. I nodded and made a gesture with my hand for her to take her pick. She moved closer to see and I noticed she had brown eyes with tints of grey. My eyes widened in realization and I chuckled at myself for forgetting.

"Ne, what's your name? I'm Sakura Haruno." She smiled and looked over to me.

"Hello Sakura-san! I'm Tenten!" She said while she smiled kindly at me. I smiled back. So it was Tenten. She looks cute as a child too, and her hair is down. I don't think I've ever seen it that way.

"So, do you like weapons?" I asked her as she picked up a spear. She looked over to me and nodded.

"Yeah, I love them! My family runs a ninja store in the village and I'm training to get into the academy!" She explained and I nodded to show I was listening.

"That's great. I'm training too." I told her and she looked at me happily.

"Really?! Do you think we could be in the same class?" She asked with hope. I smiled at her sadly.

"I'm not sure. How old are you?" I asked her.

"I'm five years old...what about you?" She asked me, finally catching on to what I knew.

"Three. Four in two months. I'm sorry, but I don't think we'll be in the academy at the same time." I told her sadly. She lowered the spear back onto the scroll.

"That's too bad. I thought I would at least know someone." I raised an eyebrow at her comment.

"What do you mean?" I asked. She looked down at the weapons.

"My family just moved here. I don't know anyone...besides you I suppose." She answered me. Now that I thought about it. A lot wasn't known about Tenten's life, more than most other characters.

"Ne, Tenten-san." She looked over to me as I called her.

"We may not be in the academy together, but we can still be friends and hang out." She looked surprised but instantly stood up and took the chance to accept my suggestion.

"Yeah! I'd like that! Thanks for being my first friend here Sakura-chan!" I smiled at the change in honorifics.

"Tenten-san, do you know how to throw kunai?" I asked her, knowing that in the future she was one of the best weapon users. She nodded in excitement.

"Would you mind teaching me a little? I can't seem to hit a target." She smiled and turned back to the weapons. She took ahold of the kunai and came towards me.

"I would love to teach you Sakura-chan!" She said as she walked over to the center. She placed them on the ground beside her. She handed me one and took five for herself.

"Watch this Sakura-chan!" I nodded and stepped back to give her space. Noticing her stance was much different from Shisui's. She had a Chinese style type of stance. Most likely from being taught by her parents in her homeland. She threw the kunai in her right hand first and spun around and threw the kunai on her left hand. All of the kunai hit their targets, not on the bull's-eye, but way better than I have ever done. She straightened up and looked at me.

"How was I?!" She asked curiously. I smiled and clapped.

"That was amazing. You use a different style, correct?" I asked as she came over to me.

"Yeah, from my homeland. How did you know?" She asked with the tilt of her head.

"It looks different from the ones I've seen." She nodded and then smiled at me.

"Your turn!" She said as she pulled me over. When her hands grabbed my left hand I saw and image. It was of two people. One a male, with black short hair and grey eyes while the female had long brown hair and brown eyes. They must be her parents, since they had similar features.

'Inner, this is the first time we've seen someone's memory without concentrating.' I said as I continued to see the image.

**"That's right. Maybe we've gotten better from all the practice!"** She exclaimed. She could be right. Tenten then let go and helped fix my stance.

"Since you've never hit the mark, maybe it's because of your stance." She said as she moved my hands around and explained how to throw it. I ended up being in the position I had seen her take. My body was parallel to the targets. Left leg was holding up all my weight as my right leg was raised and bent down on the knee, it made me feel like I was doing knee to elbow exercises. My right arm holding the kunai was crossed over my chest horizontally, and my left arm was out to the side, slightly behind me.

"Try it like this first. Once you feel more comfortable you can change it." She informed. I nodded and focused on the target. I added no chakra for obvious reasons and when I felt ready, I fired. I outstretched my right leg sideways so it slid on the ground until firmly placed on the ground. I was now completely parallel to the target. My right arm whipped out and threw the kunai in a straight line towards the target. Firing off the kunai always gave me a suspenseful feeling, especially after the accident from before; but when I heard the familiar sound of the knife hitting the target, I almost leapt in joy. I noticed the kunai barely hit the circular target but it's the first time I've ever gotten so close, so I was happy with what I had.

"You did it!" Tenten exclaimed in joy. I nodded and smiled in accomplishment.

"It's thanks to you Tenten-san." I told her with sincere gratitude. She looked surprised and blushed in embarrassment.

"No...I barely did anything..." She said timidly.

"No. You really did help. That was the first time I had ever hit the target." I informed her, trying to boost up her confidence.

We spent the rest of the morning together along with part of the afternoon. We trained and I insisted on playing something, because it seemed that I had to remind every character they were still children. She went home when she informed me she was supposed to meet her parents to have lunch with them. I stayed behind and practiced for two more hours on my kunai throwing. I was now able to hit two out of the five targets every time. I didn't hit bulls-eye but I still hit the target.

I went to the bakery to meet up with Madoka. We went home to eat and spent the evening with Chouko as I practice the new dance forms. The Land of Lightning's dance was very fast. It involved doing movements which required precise and quick forms. I knew it would involve a lot of forms and I was correct. Because of its fast movements, the dance held the most forms over all. After two hours of practice, Chouko left to have dinner at her house. Kioshi was coming in late so Madoka and I ate dinner together. After dinner, I studied a bit before going to bed. Thoughts about tomorrow going through my mind all night, not allowing me to sleep, until the deep hours of the night.

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**Next chapter Sakura goes to meet the Uchiha's! Hopefully you enjoyed the chapter and don't forget if you want her to meet someone before the time skip, just tell me who. The big time skip won't happen until she meets some other characters; but little time skips will occur, as you have probably noticed. Anyways, thank you again for reading and reviewing!**


	17. Chapter 17

**Author's Note:** Hey guys sorry it was posted a bit later! There's actually a couple of things I want you to know before you read. Some reviewers have requesting for Kakashi, Hinata, Neji, and Ibiki. You guys don't have to worry, since I have read your request and they will appear before the time skip. Also, a few things will be different, such as the Uchiha compound's layout, and some other few things. So I hope you enjoy the chapter and review, and if you have questions just ask!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**The Game**

**Sakura's POV**

I was awoken from my sleep by Madoka. She had burst through my door so early in the morning the sun wasn't even up. I watched her as I sat on my bed. She ran around my room gathering things I would need. I sighed and dreaded the idea of going. When Madoka saw me lay back down on the bed she pulled away the covers and told me to take a shower. I trudged towards the bathroom, wanting the time to slow down. Neither Inner or Madoka were helping out with that. They were both demanding that I hurry, for different reasons. After I had brushed my teeth and showered Madoka had told me to wear the clothes she had laid out in my bed. So I walked out into my room with my bath robe on, I expected to see a dress but was surprised to see how normal it was. She had picked out an outfit from the Land of Water. It was silky royal blue pants that looked like ninja pants. The shirt was from the same material and color, its style reminded me of a yukata with no sleeves. The back of the shirt held our Haruno symbol. The material felt nice, and I was also glad that it was a particularly dull silk, for it didn't shine so brightly. Undernieth the shirt was a long-sleeve fishnet shirt. Wrapping around my right thigh was my holster, that was given to me by Haruki. On my feet were the blue ninja sandals. All in all, I felt comfortable while the clothes looked cute. I finished the look by doing a small French braid to the side of my head, gathering the right side of my bangs. Since the parting was on the left, I didn't have to worry about the little bangs that would get on my face.

I walked down to the kitchen and noticed Madoka had already finished making breakfast. We began eating together until Kioshi came down to eat with us. During and after dinner, Madoka insisted on refreshing my mind about all the etiquette lessons she had given me before. She was so excited I could see it in her eyes. But the question was why was she all excited? Although it could be because I would be meeting one of the most powerful clans in Konoha. Kioshi wasn't so happy. Ever since he was informed during dinner last night that I was invited by Itachi and Shisui, he had this shocked expression on his face. He had whispered something to Madoka, who in turn burst out laughing. She patted his back in a calm manner. She had then told him that it was okay and that it wasn't_ that_ sort of meeting yet. Whatever that meant, neither Inner nor I could understand. I wasn't so cheerful either, so I could empathize with Kioshi, for whatever reason he was unhappy about.

It wasn't like I didn't want to meet the Uchiha's. In fact, I really did, I only wish it was for a different reason...a friendly one. Maybe it would be friendly on the outside, but I knew deep inside that it felt like I would be watched, for what? I had yet to figure out.

Breakfast finished and I was getting more nervous by the minute. I was told to go at eight, and currently it was seven fifteen. We sat in the living room, Madoka was still cramming me with knowledge I already knew, and Kioshi just sat and listened.

At seven-thirty my anxiousness escalated when the door bell rang. Silence filled with wonder was felt in the air and I dreadfully knew they had all this planned out. They really wouldn't allow me to escape. Madoka opened the door and being the good hostess she was, greeted them and welcomed them in.

The footsteps that were heard felt like eternity had passed before they stopped in front of me. Shisui sporting his big grin, greeted us. He was the only one who came and I didn't know if I should be relaxed or cautious. I decided Inner should be cautious while I took on the façade of being relaxed.

"Hey Sakura-chan! Ready to go?!" He asked after greeting Kioshi.

"Good morning Shisui-san. And yes, I'm ready." I said while I stood from my small bow.

"Alright! Let's go then!" He said and then excused himself. I said bye to Madoka and Kioshi and before I left, Madoka placed something wrapped in a dark blue cloth in my hands. She instructed me to give it to Mikoto. I nodded and said bye again before following Shisui outside.

I had thought this meeting was going to be wierd since the moment it started. But I was wrong. It felt weird the moment I stepped out of my house.

**"I'm sensing something weird around us!"** Inner informed as she tried to concentrate in my mind.

'I know. I feel it too.' I said as I discreetly looked around. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. Everything looked as it did everyday. The only problem was, there was a large amount of chakra all around.

"What's wrong Sakura-chan?" Shisui asked as he looked down at me.

'Was I that obvious?' I asked Inner as I looked up with a smile.

**"You shoudn't be."** Inner said as she continued to sense around us.

"Nothings wrong Shisui-san. Why? Is there something wrong?" I asked while looking around.

"No...Not that I know of." He answered. I side glanced up at him, noticing the confusion in his eyes. I focused back in front of me. The chakra was so close around us that it messed with my sensing.

**"We just passed Sasuke-kun!"** Inner said in confusion. I frowned.

'What? How?' I asked as I looked around the street. We had not passed Sasuke.

**"I don't know! But his chakra was coming from back there!"** She said. I looked up at Shisui.

'He knows. I think he's testing us. Should we say something?' I asked as I concentrated on sensing anything other than the chakra that's all around me.

**"Ne Outer...do you think this is, genjutsu?"** She asked. My eyes widened for a split second.

'Thats right! Shisui was considered one of the best genjutsu users. We have to make him stop without telling him we know.' Looking around I saw a weapon stand. I smilled discreetly and then turned towards Shisui.

"Ne Shisui-san, let's go check out that stand!" I said as I began to walk towards it without him. If he had casted a low-level genjustu then none of this should be real. He wouldn't cast such a high levelled genjustu for a kid...right? It took three more anxious steps before he appeared in front of me, blocking my way.

"Nah Sakura-chan! Let's go see the weapons we have, besides were almost there!" He said as he placed his hand on my back to lead me in a different direction. I smiled in victory and followed along. Soon we approached the place Sasuke's chakra felt the strongest. After we took a whole turn around the village market we walked straight for the compound and he released the genjutsu. I noticed with satisfaction how he seemed to stay confused throughout the rest of the walk. I didn't have a clue on what he was thinking, although I could easily find out with a single touch but decided against it. He might tell me on his own.

We soon arrived at the gates that surrounded the compound.

"We're here!" He exclaimed excitedly. I wasn't as excited but smiled up at him anyway. I might as well get through this now. Shisui opened the gate and passed through it, I followed after and looked around as he closed the gate.

I was facing the side of a traditional house to the left. On the right, at the front of the house was a garden. Both the house and garden were beautiful. Farther a way, I could see more traditional houses with their own comfortable space. It reminded me of a very spaced out neighborhood of traditional houses.

"Come on! I'll take you to the others!" Shisui said as he walked up some stairs that lead to the wooden floored passages, or the outer hallways of the house. I followed him up and felt like I was back in Haruki's house. I had very fond memories of the outside hallways that went all around his house. Looking around as I walked, I noticed the interior structure for some rooms. The house was very well built and had the same color of wood as Haruki's. The color was a rich, dark mahogany color. It contrasted well with the light-colored floor and the paper on the shoji doors. Some rooms were opened for the nice weather and I could see the furnishings were also kept to the traditional style. We turned left on the hallway and then right, due to the house's structure. We stopped in front of the opened shoji doors. Looking inside the room, I noticed it to be an eating area. There was a low table in the center, with cushions around it to sit on. This room was big and connected to the kitchen, which was behind it. The only thing that separated them was a bar-like counter. To the left of the room there were three shoji doors. Besides the small plants the room was pretty plain.

**"Hopefully the rest of the house has some different designs."** Inner said. I agreed, the house was full of only the necessary. Where were the colors? The paintings?

"Sakura-chan, Shisui-kun come in!" I smiled up at her. I bowed slightly and greeted her.

"Good morning Mikoto-san." I said as I straightened back up. She smiled down at me warmly. Not a lot has been known about the characters personal lives, but I'm glad I know the gist of things.

"Oh Saukra-chan! You're so cute!" She exclaimed excited as she intertwined her fingers together. I smiled up at the kind woman. Loud, quick footsteps were heard running towards us followed by another set that walked more quietly. I knew before they even stepped foot in the room who they belonged to. The shoji door was roughly pushed aside due to the excitement.

"Okaa-san! Look! Nii-san and I found another one!" Sasuke said holding up a scroll with a tiny imprinted cat paw? He had scratches all over him.

**"Kyaaa! Sasuke-kun!"** Inner shouted as she looked at him with hearts in her eyes. He looked around as he noticed the atmosphere and his eyes widened for a fraction before glaring at me.

"What are _you_ doing here?!" He asked me unbelievingly. I blinked and tilted my head in confusion. Was he not informed of my coming here today?

"Did you not know I was coming today?" I asked him. He looked around and noticed that the others were all quiet. Why didn't anyone tell him? Mikoto acted just as if she knew.

"Whatever...And you called me a stalker." He said while smirking and crossing his arms in a smug way. I chuckled at his attempt to embarrass me. That child will have to get used to the fact that I hardly ever do anything to merit me getting embarrassed. I looked over to Mikoto, ignoring the incredulous look I was being sent by Sasuke.

"Mikoto-san, my mother said to give this to you." I said as I handed the bag up to her. She took it and thanked me, still looking amused by the whole situation.

"Give Madoka-chan my thanks when you get home, okay?" She said as she walked over to place the bag on the counter.

"Of course." I said, the room soon fell into silence and I was trying to pick a good conversation that Madoka had crammed me with. I turned over to Shisui, who was the closest and probably the most talkative person in the room.

"Ne Shisui-san." I said easily gaining the attention of everyone. That feeling of being watched came back with full force.

"Yeah, what is it Sakura-chan?" He asked as looked down at me.

"I've practiced my kunai throwing and I hit two targets each time now." I informed him. Alright this would be a bit risky, what with the accident.

"Oh really?! That's great Sakura-chan!" He said excitedly and began to pat my head. Okay that went well...besides the messing up my hair part, but I wont push my luck.

"Wait! What is going on?! How do you two even know each other?!" Sasuke said. It seems he hates to be left out on the things.

"We met a couple of days ago. I was training and they happened to be watching. They stayed for a while and taught me how to throw kunai, that's all." He looked surprised that they hadn't told him anything.

"Why wasn't I told?" He asked no one in particular. Inner and I felt him sadden.

"It's not that important." I said trying to make him feel better. He glared at me for a moment before looking down at the tatami mats. Now I definitely didn't know what to say. Thankfully, Mikoto came in with a bowl of pastries. She set the bowl on the table.

"Come have some snack's before training." We all sat around the table. All the lessons with Madoka on sitting properly had engraved this to my body forever, I did it automatically now.

"Wah! These are my favorite!" Said Shisui with joy as he reached for one. Mikoto nodded her head.

"That's right. Madoka-chan sent over all of our favorite's!" I looked in bowl and saw the different small pastries. So they all liked her sweets.

"Sakura-chan, Itachi and Shisui said you were three. Same age as Sasuke here." She said with a smile and we all looked at Sasuke's frown.

"I will be turning four in two months." I said and she looked at me with surprise.

"Then your older than Sasuke by four months." She said with a giggle as she looked at her son. Sasuke, if possible was frowning even more. He was trying to act like he didn't care about the situation, which seeing him put real effort into it was rather cute. When we finished eating pastries. Mikoto stood and said she would be preparing lunch. I asked if I could help but she declined stating that I was her guest. She said for me to go and practice with the others.

"But why does she have to practice with us?!" Sasuke asked his dear elder brother as we went onto the garden up front.

"Sasuke, don't be rude. We invited Sakura-san to join us today." Itachi said. Sasuke seemed to calm down only slightly.

"Alright kid's, lets practice!" Shisui said excitedly. Although Sasuke was angry at me, he still had an excited glint in his eyes. Just as quick as before, Shisui had positioned targets far away. He also had some kunai in his hands.

Sasuke grabbed some, as well as Itachi, but I declined, showing that I had brought my own. Sasuke and I listened to Shisui and Itachi tell us all they knew about kunai. From the best way to handle them to the reasons why we shouldn't handle them wrongly. After a few minutes they had decided it was time for practice.

"Okay, first watch us and then you guys can go." Shisui said as he stepped up near Itachi. In a few seconds they were seen running towards the open field. When they arrived at a distance they found comfortable they fired the kunai. Of course they hit bulls-eye on every target. They appeared beside us faster than they ran towards the targets earlier. My guess is that they slowed down for our sake.

"You guys ready?!" Shisui asked looking at Sasuke's happy nod and my normal nod. I wanted to say no, but that wasn't going to work, so I nodded and smiled. Shisui disappeared and reappeared behind us. He pushed us toward the targets. I was really starting to hate his speed. Not for envious reasons more like it gave me headaches. Sensing his chakra in one place and then reappearing somewhere else made me constantly on alert. Not to mention my unease when it came to things popping out of no where.

"Sakura-chan! Your falling behind!" Shisui informed from where I once stood. I looked around and noticed that I had zoned out while waiting to go. Sasuke was already half way there. I shook my head and sprinted off quickly in order to catch up. I caught up to Sasuke quickly and made it look as if I was trying hard to keep up, I grabbed a single kunai since Sasuke also had one. When I arrived to the distance I had practiced on yesterday, I took up the stance Tenten taught me, narrowing my eyes at the target. Sasuke was going to keep getting closer when he stopped and looked at my stance.

"What are you doing? You have to get closer or you'll never-" Before he could finish his sentence, I threw the kunai. The precision practice from the day before had helped my aim greatly. The kunai made a noise that echoed in the quiet field. I looked closer and noticed that the kunai had gotten really close to hitting bulls-eye. I straightened up and looked on in satisfaction.

"What?! You weren't supposed to be able to make it! And what was up with that stance?!" Sasuke shouted in annoyance.

"I was able to make it because of practice. The stance was taught to me by a friend." I answered his questions as he glared at my kunai.

"That was great!" Shisui said as he approached.

"You've gotten much better Sakura-san." Itachi said.

"Thank you." I said as I smiled at both of them.

"Nii-san! I have also been practicing and I have never once gotten that close!" He said his voice laced with the smallest hint of a whine.

"Sakura-san practices on her own Sasuke. You should do that too. I wont always have the time." Itachi told his pouting brother.

"That's right Sasuke." My eyes widened at the new voice behind us. Turning around I looked at the man who I didn't sense arrive. I was actually surprised with his appearance. Just like everyone else, he too was very young. He didn't have his creases under his eyes, which was good. It meant he didn't have have that stern look on his face all the time, which in turn meant that he still didn't have such hostile thoughts about the village. What surprised me the most was his hair, it was long. I remember in the anime/manga his hair was short, it had reached his shoulders; now it reach his lower back. Maybe he would cut it later on? All of this was still strange to me. It still feels wierd to meet the characters of an anime/manga. I would never in my eighteen years of life have had imagined that this would be my new life.

I was brought out of my thoughts by the sound of Sasuke's compliant voice.

"Yes Otou-san." Sasuke said. I looked between them and could see the rift between them starting to form.

"So this is the guest Itachi and Shisui invited." He said emotionless.

"Good afternoon Uchiha-sama. My name is Sakura Haruno." I said, once done I stood up straight from my bow. I looked at him and held the stare. I thanked the gods when Mikoto said lunch was ready. I broke the short staring contest and couldn't help but think he had sensed that as my hesitation.

We walked back inside and I was absolutely concentrating on all the etiquette lessons I had to do. The room went silent as we waited for Mikoto. I had asked to help, but she declined again; and I couldn't help but think that I have never been so uncomfortable.

**"He's pretty mean..."** Inner said as she backed away farther inside my mind.

'Yeah, but I'm sure there's a reason.' I said as I kept my gaze fixed on the kitchen behind him.

**"What kind of reason justifies him being mean to us?!"** She asked as she glared at Fugaku inside my head.

'We're strangers in his house. In this world, some children can already be counted as adults, nit to mention deadly ninja. He has a very justifiable reason for being cautious with a stranger near his family.' I answered. Inner became quiet for awhile until she sighed.

**"Of course. When you put it like that, it makes perfect sense."** Inner said as she crossed her arms. I smiled at her silliness and Mikoto as she walked in. She served Fugaku first and then the rest of us. Of course, I had waited until Fugaku began to eat. The whole time we ate I felt eyes on me almost constantly. I tried desperately to follow all the table etiquette lessons Madoka had engraved in me. I didn't think it could get any worse, since both Shisui and Mikoto were very talkative. I was wrong.

'Inner, do me a favor. Take over our chakra. Don't let Fugaku or anyone sense how nervous we get. I have a feeling things won't be getting better.' I said. Inner nodded and I felt her start to concentrate.

After we finished eating, the atmosphere was so uncomfortable, it made Sasuke squirm in his seat. I never liked silence when it felt as if I was being suffocated; Inner knew very well from my outburst last time. As I was about to speak up, Fugaku beat me to it.

"Haruno-san, how old are you?" I stared up at him.

"Three, Uchiha-sama. And Sakura is fine. Haruno-san is better suited for my father." I said while I continued to stare up at him. There was no way I would call him by name when he had yet to give one. Which was rude, but understandable I suppose.

**"What are you doing?! Don't stare so openly and request things! He'll probably think your challenging him!"** She yelled at me.

'Sorry old habits. The staring is from my other world when I spoke to people. And the request was just so I could feel a bit better when he talks tome.' I answered her, before focusing back on Fugaku.

"I see. Sakura-san, I have been told you do not wish to enter the academy early, even though you could possibly make the requirements." He said getting straight to the point. What did he mean by possibly? Although I supported his cautiousness with strangers. He didn't have to be a jerk.

"That's correct." I said. Might as well speak as good as I could afford to show. Just enough so he wouldn't view me as someone who didn't know what they were saying.

"Is it because of your civilian status?" He asked nonchalantly. The question however did surprise the others. I already had rough ideas of what he would ask, so it didn't bother me as much.

"Fugaku!" Mikoto exclaimed, most likely wanting to stop where this conversation was going.

"Mikoto calm down. I'm merily asking a few questions. Isn't that right sakura-san?" He asked me. Mikoto still looked nervously between us. He was testing me openly and so I decided to accept the challenge.

"It's fine Mikoto-san. They are merily questions." I said seemingly surprising everyone. Turning back to face Fugaku who still seemed to be emotionless.

"I believe my status has nothing to do with my decision." He looked very surprised with my answer.

"Then is it financial problems or is someone holding you back?" He asked, which made Mikoto turn to him quickly in shock.

"Neither. There are no financial problems within my family and my father agrees with my decision along with the rest of my family." He frowned slightly at the way I seemed to take everything with a calm stride. Although I had lied about Kioshi and the others agreeing, I was sure they would agree if I asked.

"Then what is keeping you back? If I may ask." He added the last bit as he glanced at Mikoto's face full of disapproval. There was no way I was telling them it was for Naruto. First reason being, I had yet to know if they even liked Naruto. Second reason was, if he didn't know him and thought he was a regular kid; well I don't think he would accept that as my reason. Not that he knew what my true intentions were for doing that.

"It's exactly as you said before Uchiha-sama. I could possibly be accepted but I'm still lacking in the basics." I said.

"That's what the Academy is for. To teach you." He said as he continued to observe me.

"If you don't mind me asking. What are the requirements for early admission?" I asked him, knowing he could answer; since his son entered the Academy early.

"It depends mostly on your skills and knowledge. They will place you in a class according to the requirements you meet. They look for how much you comprehend the ninja arts. The knowledge you posses in each category as well as advanced academic knowledge. Depending on what they know of your skills is what they use to decide where you will be placed." He explained to me. I nodded slowly showing I understood. Going by what he said, I was probably able to get in; but there was no way I would be leaving the others.

"I have already assessed for myself that you posses adequate academic knowledge to meet the requirement to enter. But I haven't seen the skills you posses in the ninja arts. If you posses enough skill the Uchiha clan would be willing to finance your academy years." He said seriously. My eyes widened and I blinked at him openly. He's completely serious! What the heck is he thinking? Why would he cover all the expenses of a stranger? Maybe its because this is the first time his family take an interest to someone outside the family?...what if they told him about the chakra accident?!

**"Calm down! Man! Its been awhile since you've gotten nervous."** Inner said trying to calm me down.

'Your right. I won't be able to think straight...thanks.' I said, grateful she was taking care of our chakra. Looking back to Fugaku, I straightened up and looked at him with determination.

"Thank you for the generous offer...but I decline." I said while bowing slightly. The room was so quiet right now, that we could practically hear each others breathing. I sat up straight again and looked up to him. He had a frown on his face but not one of anger. It looked more out of confusion.

"And your sure you wouldn't change your mind?" He asked me after a moment of silence.

"I'm positive." I answered without hesitation.

"I would still like to assess your skill in combat." He said. He really wasn't going to let this go. It wouldn't hurt to just show him...right?

"If it's alright with you, Itachi shall be your opponent." He said. My eyes along with everyone's shifted towards the quiet boy to my right.

'Now what! We wont be able to take him on!' I said starting to get even more nervous.

**"But that's a good thing...isn't it?"** Inner asked. I tilted my head slightly in thought.

'Yes...but still, Itachi's smart. He wont let me lose without knowing I'm holding back.' I said as I thought through different ideas.

**"Why would you hold back?! You think we can beat Itachi?!"** Inner shouted.

'Of course we can't beat him. Inner, the whole point of this fight is not to beat Itachi, it's to see what my skill level is. If I show even the tiniest bit of prodigy skills he will probably tell father.' I said. So far there wasn't much for me to do. I had to hide my skill somehow...but how? He was right, the Academy is to teach, if I so much as follow and dodge his attacks repeatedly. He would deem that enough along with my high academic level.

'Wait!...Maybe, we shouldn't lie at all.' I thought about the idea being formulated in my mind, and thought it was the best option we had.

**"What do you mean?"** Inner asked confused. I turned back to Fugaku.

"Uchiha-sama, my I ask for one condition?" I asked as he along with the others looked at me with incredulous stares.

"Lets hear it first." He said as I smiled.

"I wont lie Uchiha-sama, so I must tell you that I do believe that if I were to face Itachi-san in a fight, he would win. So I propose a fight with you instead." I said quite serious of my decision. I would be laughing if the situation wasn't so serious, from the look on all their faces.

"Do you think you would fare better in a battle against me?" He asked incredulously. I nodded up towards him, determined not to back down.

"Yes. Although the type of battle I'm challenging you in, is not in combat." He raised and eyebrow while crossing his arms.

"Then what kind is it?" He asked interested. I can probably imagine why, it's not every day someone challenges the head of clan, especially not a child.

"Uchiha-sama, have you ever played Go?" I asked. He seems to have finally understood why I said we should battle without combat.

"I see, now I get it. Yes, I have played." He answered. I smiled, this was going according to my instantaneous made up plan.

**"Are you crazy?! We've never played Go!"** She shouted.

'Your half correct. You've never played Go, but I have.' I told her.

**"What are you talking about?"** She asked.

'Back in my other world I played, but I never won against the old man who taught me. I met him in one of my travels. I remember I was bored that day and didn't have anything to do in the hotel we stayed at. So my two older brothers and little sister and I split up to find something to do. That's when I found him.' I told her as I reminisced. I forgot where I was for a moment and looked back to Fugaku.

"So my condition is, if you beat me in one game of Go, I will fight Itachi-san. If I win, I don't have to." I said looking straight at him, hoping he agreed. He thought about it for awhile until he answered.

"Alright, I agree, but why do you not want to fight Itachi?" He asked. As if he didn't know...that jerk.

"Uchiha-Sama, I think we all know what would happen if I did." I said to him with a knowing stare. If I fought Itachi I would loose in less than a minute, probably in a few seconds if he tried. Fugaku nodded and stood up.

"Follow me." He instructed. I nodded and stood up. The others followed as well.

**"So...do you really think we can win?"** Inner asked worriedly.

'Inner, if there is one thing I am confident about, its my intellectual ability. My intelligence isn't that bad and with your amazing ability to reconjure memories, I think we can win.' I told her as we walked out of the room.

**"I think you trust my abilities more than I do. I mean, sure, I trust you but I don't know if I'll be able to help."** Inner said sadly.

'Well I trust you and you trust me, that's good.' I said as we began to move down the hallways towards another room.

**"...Thanks...So what's the plan?"** She asked.

'I wouldn't call it a plan. It's more like a reenactment.' I said also thinking about the strategy.

**"What do you mean?"** She asked.

'I will be using the same strategy as the first game I had lost to. All you have to do is show me the memory again and we'll follow along. The reason I'm using that one is because the old man I told me how he won. He said it was the perfect strategy for when your opponent underestimates you, he won because that and by using his strategy in ultimate defence.' I explained to Inner.

**"Did he make the strategy up himself? Don't you feel bad for copying it?"** She asked me.

'I think he wanted to teach me. Since he told me himself, I don't feel so bad. I feel as if he passed down his secret onto me. I'd rather feel this way then feel as if I stole it.' I said. We had finally stopped in front of a closed door.

**"Hey Outer, can I ask you something before you start the game?"** She asked as we stepped into the room.

'Sure, go ahead.' I said as I followed Fagaku.

**"I found the memory you wanted and saw it. What I wanted to ask is why did you pick Go?"** She asked as she tilted her head.

'Because Go isn't just any regular game. The old man taught me that it reflects oneself upon the game and helps in character development. Both of which we need to see in Fugaku.' I answered her question. She nodded as soon as she understood. Back inside the room, Fugaku had walked to the other side of the table that had the board on top . I sighed quietly and proceeded to sit down with my knees undernieth. I bowed towards Fugaku.

"Onegaishimasu." I said before sitting up straight. He looked at me for a second before following my example.

"Onegaishimasu." He said and then sat up. We both looked to the side. We noticed that the white stones were closer to him which was convenient. He had the honors anyways being the eldest along with having the higher status to start the nigiri.

He took a handful of white stones. I didn't have to think long to make my decision. Reaching towards the black stones quietly, I grabbed two black stones and gently placed them on the table. The stones made a small noise on contact with the table. Although making noise was rude, it wasn't rude if it wasnt so loud.

Fugaku placed his white stones upon the table. There was a total of six. I had inwardly smiled at guessing the number to be even. Reaching over to the bowl that held the black stones, I took my first stone in between my index and middle finger and placed it in the intersection on the upper right corner. This was all just Go etiquette but it was how I was taught, so I stuck with it.

Fugaku also reached over to his bowl and placed his first stone in his desired location. And so the battle of Go began.

I had to admit, Fugaku was good, very good. Not even fifteen minutes into the game and he already had me using strategies from other games I had played. Although he had a few good moves here and there he was still going to be trapped within my...or should I say Katsu's strategy. He was very predictable only because he underestimated me. If he would have taken this as seriously as me, he wouldn't have been so easy to figure out.

I hadn't noticed how long we played because I was so focused in the game. But once I accidentally moved my numb legs, they began to have that prickling sensation, and I knew that it had been two hours. Two hours had been my limit to sitting in that position and it was starting to hurt. I tried to re-concentrate on the game when I heard a sigh coming from Fugaku. I looked up to him, since this had been the only noise he had made through the whole game.

"I resign." He said quite humbly. My eyes widened and I looked down to the covered grid. I noticed that he was right, even if he didn't resign I would have ended up with more points. Funny thing was, I had only used half of Katsu's strategy. Meaning, if I had really wanted to. I could have had a great chance of winning by myself. I looked up to Fugaku.

"Thank you for the game." I said as customary. He nodded and thanked me as well. We began to clean up the board and place the stones back into their bowls. Once finished, we placed them back on the table near the board.

"That was a very good game." Fugaku said. It surprised me in how truthful it sounded.

"You were actually my first win." I told him truthfully, since he had also been speaking the truth. His eyes widened and I noticed the others were surprised as well. I had only glanced at them once during the entire game. It was only because Sasuke squirmed out of the traditional sitting style a few minutes into the game. I had been so focused on the game and everything was so quiet and nothing moved besides our hands. That his sudden movement had caused me to jump a little and take notice of their intrigued eyes on the game. Even Sasuke looked interested, whether he knew how to play or not.

"Really? You looked quite confident with your moves. Was I that easy to defeat?" He asked quite seriously. I wanted to laugh at the situation.

"No. You were a very good opponent. My teacher...he was just that good. I have never won against him and no one else around me knew how to play. So I had to get used to losing a lot. Today was a very pleasant surprise." I told them honestly.

"He must be really good then if you could never win." I smiled at his comment. He soon stood up and I was jealous he could stand without any problems. I knew if I tried to move at all, my legs would hurt from the strain.

"Then as agreed upon, you don't have to fight Itachi." He said as he looked between me an the others. I nodded with a smile up at him. He nodded back and began to walk out the room. He slid the shoji doors aside and stopped before stepping out. He turned to face me.

"I do hope you come by some time to accompany Sasuke in training...and perhaps we can have another match as well." My eyes widened for a moment until I realized he was waiting for me to say something. I smiled a big genuine smile up at him, feeling as if I had finally jumped another obstacle in my way.

"Of course Uchiha-sama!" I said happily.

"Fugaku." He said and I thought I had heard wrong.

"Pardon?" I asked.

"Call me Fugaku. Uchiha is better suited for my father." He said and smiled down at my surprised face. I snapped out of it and couldn't help the giggle that escaped as I noticed my own words he had used.

"Okay, have a nice afternoon Fugaku-sama." I said and he nodded before leaving. I couldn't help feel like I had accomplished the impossible today. Inner, herself was jumping in joy for many reasons inside my head and her happy attitude was starting to get contagious.

* * *

**Wow this was pretty long! Hope you guys liked it! By the way, a review I read made me realize that I should find out who you guys want as candidates. This will not decide who Sakura stays with. This is only for me to know who I should make her interact with in a certain way to give them all a fair chance. Just so you know, I'm okay with just about any pairing so go ahead and tell me. This just gives me a general idea for who should be the candidates. Since they're all young right now, nothing major will happen, besides possible crushes, it's all about the friendship right now. So bye bye for now, and I hope you continue to read and review.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Authors Note:** Every single one of you guys are amazing! I had problems saving the chapter yesterday, that's why I posted the chapter late. Anyways, I've read the pairings you guys suggested. You guys don't have to tell me right now, it can be whenever you want. There's such a variety already, which is good. I can broaden her interactions with a lot of characters now. There's just one last thing I want to say. If Sakura interacts romantically later on with a character you guys don't like, please keep in mind that it's being done because the pairing was requested; and most likely I like the pairing as well. I've already stated that I like just about any pairing, and even if I didn't like a certain pairing. I would still make them interact, for your sake, because you guys are so nice and I appreciate all of you. By the way this chapter continues for the last one.

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Five in One Day**

**Sakura's POV**

The room was quiet for only the span of three seconds. Shisui had jumped out of his sitting position and ran over to me excitedly.

"Sakura-chan, that was amazing! I couldn't keep my eyes away from the game!" He said as he grinned down at me. I smiled up at him.

"Thank you Shisui-san!" I said. The others soon approached us.

"Sakura-chan, that really was a great game! I haven't seen Fugaku so intense in a game of Go in a long time!" Mikoto informed me with a big smile. Now that she had mentioned it. During and after the game he was completely different. I guess Katsu was right in the deep meaning behind Go.

"He was are real challenge to beat." I said up to her. She had no idea how true that was, reasons beside the game.

"So that teacher of yours...who is he?" Sasuke asked, trying to be as uncaring as before, but I could see the curiosity in his eyes. I suppose I can tell them about Katsu, besides his whereabouts of course.

"My teacher is an elder man named Katsu. I met him when I travelled around last year. He lives in Suna." I said, choosing Suna because no one could possibly know whether I lied or not. And if they asked Madoka or Kioshi, it wouldn't matter, because they knew I made a friend. They just didn't know who.

"So you were travelling when Madoka-san wasn't at the bakery." Said Itachi. I nodded up to him.

"We had left to celebrate my birthday with my grandfather on my mothers side. He lives in the Land of Water. After that, we just travelled around." I explained. They nodded as I told them about Madoka's absence.

"Well then Sakura-chan, if you're not fighting Ita-kun, do you want to practice some more?" Shisui asked, earning himself a glare from Itachi. I nodded up to him.

"Alright, let's go!" He exclaimed excitedly as he began to walk towards the door.

"I can't." I said, earning their attention.

"Why not Sakura-chan?" Asked Mikoto. I wanted to cry. My amazing victory didn't make me feel so victorious when I couldn't even stand!

"Uhm...I can't stand up...my legs are stuck." I said already expecting their reactions. And as predicted, their looks of amusement turned into laughter. Ranging from Mikoto's and Itachi's quiet chuckles to Sasuke and Shisui's overly obnoxious laughs. I sighed and waited for them to stop, and of course Inner wasn't helping by laughing either.

As I watched Shisui and Sasuke laugh, I hadn't noticed Itachi approach me.

"Sakura-san." I looked up to see he had his hand extended for me to take. Well, that was very nice of him.

**"Kyaaa! Take the cute boys hand! Take it!"** Inner shrieked as she looked on with a blush on her face.

I smiled up to Itachi and reached for his hand. I received a scene from his memories. It was one of him, holding a baby Sasuke and promising to protect him. As I both slowly and painfully stood up, I couldn't help but to admire him. He vowed to risk everything to keep his brother safe. I felt that him and I would be able to become great friends later on. We both would risk everything for our families. As he pulled his hand away and made the memory fade, I vowed to help keep his family safe too.

"Thank you, Itachi-san." I said as I stretched out my legs. He smiled down to me and nodded.

**"Kyaaa!"** Inner shrieked and proceeded to dramatically faint. I chuckled at her action, and then proceeded to focus on the others. They had finally finished laughing but still had a few left over.

"Hahaha...sorry Sakura-chan! Your just so cute!" Shisui said as he patted my head. I frowned slightly and tried to move his hands away from my head. He stopped eventually, from all his attempts that were stopped by me.

"Let's go practice then." Sasuke said and we all nodded and followed him out. Mikoto said she would be off to see Shisui's mother, so we were left on our own. We had practiced for an hour on close range firing. Itachi and Shisui focused a bit more on Sasuke's precision and on my consistency. To my surprise I had hit one bulls-eye, the rest of my shots, however, continued to hit around it. Sadly, for a training day, we didn't get that much practice in. Sora had appeared above me signaling he had a message. Stretching out my hand for him to perch on, I whistled, signifying I was ready. He landed and I unattached the note from his leg. As I read the letter I had placed him on Shisui's arm, since he had asked if he could hold him. Madoka had actually wanted to see me. I told them of this fact and actually showed them the letter this time. Sasuke frowned slightly as he looked between Shisui and Sora.

I asked Sasuke if he wanted to hold Sora and could see the surprise in his eyes. He nodded slowly as if thinking I was only tricking him.

"Extended your arm out." I told him as I stood between Sasuke and Shisui. He surprisingly did as I said, which had caused me to smile. Shisui looked interested in how I was to proceed with the exchange. It wasn't that interesting, not with Sora being so smart.

"Sora, go to Sasuke-san." I instructed as Sora looked at me tilt my head over to Sasuke. He flapped his wings and took off flying the short distance between the two. He landed gently on Sasuke's small arm, careful not to injure the boy with his talons. He tucked his wings behind him so they wouldn't accidentally slap him in the face. Although it would be funny to see, but Inner would probably get mad.

"Wow! Nii-san look! He's so smart!" He exclaimed childishly.

"I see him Sasuke." Itachi said with a gentle look on his face. Sasuke looked really cute happy. Too bad he grows up to be a jerk, but hopefully he wouldn't have to be this time.

"Sasuke, let Sora go back to Sakura-san. She has to go meet her mother." Itachi said a few minutes later as he placed a hand on top of Sasuke's head. Sasuke looked a bit sad but nodded anyway. He looked over to me.

"What do I do?" He asked. I shook my head.

"Nothing. Sora, come here." I said and Sora happily flew over to me. Sasuke looked amazed at how cool he looked when he flew. Sora perched on my shoulder and rubbed his head on mine, his usual hello.

"It was a fun day Sakura-chan! You should come by more often!" Shisui said in excitement. I nodded, agreeing to his proposal.

"I agree. Sakura-san should come by next week to practice on our next lessons on shuriken." Itachi told Shisui who nodded.

"Okay then! Sakura-chan come back on Saturday to learn about shuriken. Don't forget to practice on your kunai throwing." He instructed. I nodded and they lead me to the gates. We bid each other good byes and I left towards the bakery. I sprinted off in the direction of the bakery which was a bit farther away. Sora took to flying high above. Not even close to the bakery did I get, before running into someone. Due to my speed I was pushed back. I was glad my extra training increased my reflexes. Instead of falling on my butt like all the other times, this time I held my ground and only skid backwards. I'm glad the person I bumped into felt like an adult, because I distinctly felt their legs crash into my face.

I looked up an apology ready to come out, but stopped as I stared in surprise at the man in front of me.

"Little girl, are you okay?" He asked snapping me out of my surprise. I straightened up and nodded up at him.

"I'm okay." I answered his question. He noticed my staring and tilted his head, very much like I do.

"You have very pretty eyes." I said, hoping that explained the reason for my staring, but who wouldn't say that to a Hyuga. It's not so much the eyes that surprised me. It was his forehead. Although Hizashi and Hiashi were identical twins, they still had features of their own. Hizashi looked much the same only much younger of course. But all of that was not the problem in this situation. Looking at the curse seal upon his forehead confused me. I had thought he was dead. If I remember correctly he died by taking his brothers place, when they had kidnapped Hinata and Hiashi killed the kidnapper. He had caused a major problem and they wanted him dead.

"Thank you and I very much like your hair as well as your eyes." He said kindly as he looked down at me. I smiled up to the nice man. His chakra felt very relaxed and gentle as Inner and I sensed around us. There was movement behind him and I looked towards the source. It was a child. He was a bit taller than me and looked like a spitting image of his father.

**"Oh my god! He looks so cute!"** Inner gushed inside my head. She was right though, Neji was a very cute child and I was happy to note that he did not yet have the curse mark. Didn't he have to get it when the heir to the main house turned three? Hinata must be younger than me by months. I soon realized I had forgotten to apologize. I looked back up to the patient man.

"I can't believe I forgot. I'm really sorry for bumping into you." I apologized with a slight bow. He chuckled.

"It's quite alright. I was very impressed with your reflexes." He said down to me. I smiled up to him.

"Well, it's happened quite often." I answered truthfully. He had an amused expression on his face.

"By the way, are you lost?" He asked noticing that I was by myself. I shook my head.

"No. I'm actually on my way to meet my mother." He smiled and nodded.

"Then as an apology for being partly responsible for the accident, how about we escort you there?" I smiled and nodded. This could be the only chance I get to befriend them so openly.

"Then after you." He said politely and I began to walk in the direction he was coming from.

"Oh wait." I said and stopped walking. Looking around I noticed Sora was missing. I Looked up and noticed he wasn't there either.

"Pardon me." I told them and they looked slightly confused. I whistled as loud as I could. The sound itself wasn't hurtful to the ears, I was just being polite. The sound ringed out for a long time. Haruki was actually very surprised by how long I could last, I didn't tell him that it was because of the breathing exercises I did for singing. As long as I knew how to exercise my breathing correctly from my last world, the exercises were easy to pick back up. After my whistle finally died down, due to the lack of air I had left. A few seconds later and Sora flew overhead. He landed on my shoulder, he had a seriously bad habit of losing me.

"Wow..." I heard a soft voice speak up. I turned over to the direction I heard it come from. Neji noticed my staring and backed up behind his dad. I didn't think he would be shy, but then again he was young and he had yet to be branded or have his father die. Thinking about the brand less Neji, reminded me of the whole kidnapping fiasco. I believe Neji was already branded at the time, so I should first find out when Hinata will turn three.

"Now that I think about it, I haven't told you my name yet. My name is Sakura Haruno and this is Sora." I informed them.

"It's very nice to meet you. I'm Hizashi Hyuga and this is my son Neji Hyuga." He greeted me. I smiled and nodded.

"Your bird Sora, is very beautiful Sakura-san." Hizashi said as they both looked at Sora perched on my shoulder. Looking over to Neji, I could see he wanted to pet him, just like all the other children.

"Do you want to try and hold him?" I asked him. He looked surprised by my suggestion and looked up excitedly to his father. Hizashi nodded and then chuckled when he saw Neji walk excitedly up to me. I noticed that besides the somewhat same facial features, they also wore the same style of clothing. A blue long-sleeved, loose-fitting kimono, with a white obi tying it closed. I smiled at the boy in front of me and extended my arm. He copied my movement and I couldn't help finding that cute. I looked over to Sora and tilted my head towards Neji.

"Go to Neji-san." I told Sora, who flew over to his arm gently. Neji smiled and patted Sora's soft head gently.

"Shall we go?" I asked Hizashi, who nodded and followed me along with Neji, who was still holding Sora. We began to make our way towards the bakery and I couldn't think of what to ask.

"Sakura-san, would your mother perhaps be Madoka-san?" He asked as we walked through the fairly empty streets.

'Do you think their friends?' I asked Inner as I nodded up to Hizashi.

**"That would certainly make things easier."** She said.

"Yes. She's my mother. Do you know her Hyuga-sama?" I asked as I tilted my head up to him. He nodded down to me.

"You don't have to call me that, just Hizashi is fine. And yes, I do know Madoka-san, she was friends with my wife." He answered. I nodded and looked back to the front of street. Now that I thought about it. They didn't ever say who his wife was. I wonder what happened. I glanced up at Hizashi and then towards the happy Neji. We arrived at the bakery and stopped by the entrance.

"Thank you for walking with me, Hizashi-sama and Neji-san." I said with a small bow. Neji extended his arm and Sora flew towards me. I smiled at Sora and then at Neji who returned it with a small one of his own.

"Your welcome Sakura-san. Then, we will be on our way, tell your mother hello for me." He said. I nodded and waved goodbye as they returned it and left. I watched them go for a few seconds before turning and going into the bakery.

"Mommy." I said as I found her up in the second story. She turned from the oven and smiled.

"Sakura! Good, your here! Naomi came by and said if you wanted to go over to see Ino." Madoka said. I nodded up to her.

"I'd like that." I said and she smiled and nodded.

"Alright, hold on for a second." She said as she finished loading the oven with pastries. She turned when she was finished.

"Alright, my shift is done!" She exclaimed happily as we walked down the stairs. Yashiro and Chouko were serving customers.

"Hey Sakura-chan!" Said Chouko. I smiled and waved at both of them.

"Hello Yashiro-san, Chouko-san." I greeted with a smile. they both returned the greeting.

"Well, were off! Take care of the rest Yashiro!" Madoka called over her shoulder as we walked towards the door.

"Ne mommy. I ran into Hizashi-sama and his son Neji-san today." I told her as we began our walk down the street.

"Oh, is that so?" She said looking down at me.

"Yeah, he said to tell you hello." I told her.

"Well, I'm glad he's doing well." She smiled.

"He said you were friends with Neji-san's mother." I said, hopefully she could tell me about her.

"Ah yes, Misaki-chan...I do miss her..." Madoka said sadly. I looked up at her.

**"Outer...she's sad...I wonder what happened"** Inner stated. I could feel it too. The sadness that suddenly appeared around her. I reached my hand up and held hers. An image was transferred. It was a beautiful woman. She had brown hair that was held up by accessories. Her eyes were an amber color. She looked very delicate and fragile with her multi-layered kimono. The older Neji looks a lot like his mother, because I'm sure this is Misaki. I felt Madoka curl her fingers around mine. I smiled sadly and squeezed her hand a little.

'...I think I know...' I said after a while. I felt Inner's confusion and spoke up before she could ask.

'Let's go to the memorial stone tomorrow.' I said and she seemed to have understood the meaning behind my words.

**"...Yeah..."** She said sadly. I sighed and looked up into the cloudy sky.

**~A Few Minutes Later~**

We arrived to a building that I remember seeing in the anime/manga. It had plants outside and a sign above that read Yamanaka Flowers. Through the window we had passed, I saw many different styles of flowers. We walked in and I noticed that up front was a counter with a cash register. Behind it was a shelf with boxes and vases, as well as a rack with different colors of ribbons. In the middle of the room there were block sections which held all types of flowers and plants. On the other side of the room there was a door that lead to the second story.

While we waited for someone to come, I looked around for plants and flowers I recognized. I found a few herbs that I read about from the book Madoka gave me. I had finished the book a few days ago; and Madoka had brought me another one. This one however, had more detail on medicinal plants. I had yet to even read half of the huge book; but with Inner's help, I could finish in a few more days.

"Madoka! Sakura-chan! Welcome, I'm glad you could make it. Ino!" She yelled up towards the second story. I did the usual bow.

"Good afternoon Naomi-san. Thank you for inviting us." I said, straightening up. Madoka smiled down to me and patted my head affectionately.

"I still can't get over how good you speak." Naomi said as she smiled down at me. Ino came down and was about to ask her what she had wanted. She stopped herself when she saw us. Her face brightened with a smile on her face.

"Sakura-chan!" Ino exclaimed excitedly as she ran over to me. She wore a plain blue dress that reached her shin, and cute little sandals. She also had her bangs pinned back with a blue clip.

"Hello Ino-chan. How are you today?" I asked her with a smile of my own.

"It's been pretty boring, but now that you're here, it won't be!" She said happily.

"Ne mommy can Sakura-chan and I go and play?" Ino asked her mother. Naomi nodded and looked over to Madoka.

"It's fine with me. Go have fun girls." Madoka said with a smile down to us.

"Thanks mommy, Madoka-san! Let's go Sakura-chan!" Ino said, and before I could bow to excuse us, Ino grabbed my hand and pulled me away.

_'We're gunna have so much fun!'_ Ino thought inside her mind. I smiled at how cute she was as a child.

**"Aww Ino-pig is sooo cute!"** Inner squealed. I rolled my eyes as she continued to call her that.

Ino ran pulling me by the hand all throughout the streets. Where we were going? Easy, to a field of flowers. How I knew? It was through seeing the images Ino was showing me unintentionally. Sora found it easier to follow from high above then beside us in the busy streets. We ran for a few minutes through the streets and then the woods. After a few turns we arrived to an open field. It was filled with tiny flowers of all kinds. No one else was around and I could tell not a lot of people knew the whereabouts of this place, and even if they knew, I doubt they would all take the time to admire the place. A real pity, for it was quite lovely here.

"It's really pretty here, isn't it? No one else knows about this place and if they do...they don't come." Ino said almost exactly what I thought a few minutes ago.

"It's very pretty." I said while taking in a deep breath of the fresh air. The air was very clean here, it reminded me that spring was almost here.

"So what do you want to do?" I asked Ino. She looked over to me and smiled.

"Let's make flower crowns!" She said happily. I nodded and looked up to find Sora coming down. Being the smart bird that he was, he landed on Ino's shoulder. He knew very well that Ino liked him.

"Kyaaa! Sora! You scared me!" She squealed and then after the shock left, she began to giggle.

For the past hour we made tons of flower crowns...well Ino did. I had to learn how to make them. It took me four attempts at making a decent flower crown.

"You need more practice!" Ino said and giggled at me. She was now placing her fourth perfectly arranged flower crown on Sora. I chuckled at how funny the scene looked. Sora's neck was completely covered by three flower crowns that were too big to be crowns. The last one she had made took her longer because she made it smaller to actually be a crown.

I looked down at my own and sighed. It looked weird...but much better than my first ones. The first ones had the flower stems sticking in all different directions, unlike Ino's who's had the stems neatly intertwined together.

"Whatever." I said and placed the crown I had recently made on my head not caring if it looked weird.

"I think it's about time we go back." I said as I looked at the slowly approaching of the sunset. She placed her fifth flower crown on her own head and stood up.

"Alright! It's too bad we couldn't spend a whole day together." She smiled sadly. I stood and Sora flew onto Ino's shoulder.

"Yeah, but I'm sure we'll be able to play some more next week." I told her, knowing that these play dates where going to be weekly for now and daily later on. She smiled and nodded, agreeing with me. We made our way slowly through the streets not having any rush to get back. We talked along the way of the things we did during the days we hadn't seen each other. Ino said she pretty much never left her parents side yet, so she was stuck in the flower shop almost everyday. She had childish jealousy when I informed her of my outings in the village. To make her feel better, I told her I would see if I could get her to come with me sometimes. She had gotten all excited and began to jump around and tackle me in a hug. I didn't tell her about the Uchiha meeting, because I didn't know whether she liked Sasuke yet. And I didn't need another girl squealing in my ear.

We were rounding the corner and heading straight to the flower shop that was just ahead when Ino grumbled something incoherent. I looked over to her and noticed with amusement a visible frown across her face. Turning back to the front, I tried to look for what was causing Ino to change from happy to grumpy. I chuckled when I found the cause across the street. Her future teammates were waiting in front of the shop. They were immediately recognizable from their miniscule changing appearance. Well besides the fact that they were younger and had that child-like cuteness to them that every child possessed. Shikamaru had the same lazy look on his face and wore a simple blue tee-shirt with his clan symbol on the front, and he had black pants that reached his shins and finished the look with black ninja shoes. Choji was also very short like everyone else. He wore clothing similar to Shikamaru. His tee-shirt was red and also sported his clan symbol on the front. His pants were black and had black ninja shoes.

**"He's not that fat!"** Inner shouted as she remembered my knowledge of him getting bullied for his size.

'Well he's a child right now, I bet he's only just now starting to eat a lot. He eats a lot to convert his calories into chakra, but I bet he hasn't even tapped into his reserves, since he's a clan child, I'm sure they'll start soon.' I said as I smiled at Ino who grunted in annoyance. We stopped a few feet away and they turned when they noticed us. Shikimaru only glanced at me for a second and most of it went to my hair. Choji, however, looked at me and hid slightly behind Shikamaru.

"And what are you guys doing here?" Ino asked them, gaining everyone's attention.

"Hello to you too, Ino." Shikamaru said sarcastically. I smiled between them, seems like their already friends.

"Don't give me that attitude Shikamaru!" Ino said annoyed. I poked Ino on her side, getting her attention.

"Don't be rude Ino-chan." I said trying to create peace between the two. She pouted but nodded.

"Yeah...sorry. They're just annoying..." Ino mumbled. I smiled at her childish actions. Looking towards the other two, I bowed slightly towards them.

"Hello. My name is Sakura Haruno, please excuse Ino's rude behavior." I added the last part just because I had a feeling Ino wouldn't apologize. I stood up straight and smiled over at them. They looked slightly surprised but soon recovered.

"Nah, we're used to Ino's attitude problems. I'm Shikamaru Nara by the way." He introduced him self with his lazy personality that was always present. I nodded and looked over to Choji. I tilted my head at him, encouraging him to tell me his name.

"...I'm Choji Akimichi..." He spoke up softly. I sent him a kind smile at his gentle nature.

"It's very nice to meet two of Ino's close friends." I said already expecting Ino's outburst.

"Wha-! No, their not!" Ino said embarrassedly. I giggled softly at her predictability.

"Yeah yeah." I said and she grabbed my arms and began to shake me.

"I'm telling the truth Sakura-chan! You have to listen to me!" She said as she shook me.

**"She's trying really hard to convince you."** Inner said in amusement.

'I know.' I said with a chuckle.

"Alright...I get it." I said. She sighed and nodded before letting go. We then looked back to the boys.

"So...why _are_ you here?" Ino asked again. Shikamaru mumbled something that sounded very familiar to his favorite word.

"Dad told me to invite you guys over to a meeting at our place. It's gunna be next week." He informed Ino. Ino looked as if she were just told she was grounded.

"Augh! I hate those meetings! There so boring!" She shouted while throwing her hands in the air.

"I know. It'll be a real drag. All the clans are meeting at my house...it's a lot worse for me." He stated. I wonder what it is that needs to have all the clans present.

"What?! All the clans! Why?!" Ino asked the question, I too wanted answered. Shikamaru just shrugged.

"Don't know. All dad told me was to tell you, but I dont think it's that important. Dad didn't seem that annoyed so I think it's just a friendly gathering." Shikamaru said and just when he finished, Inoichi appeared. He looked at us and smiled.

"Hey Sakura-chan, boys." He greeted. Shikamaru and Choji waved and smiled while I stuck with the usual bow.

"Hello Inoichi-sama." I said politely. He smiled and patted my head gently. He turned towards the boys.

"Are you here about the meeting? Was the date changed?" He asked them who in turn nodded.

"It's going to be next week, on Wednesday." Shikamaru informed. Inoichi nodded.

"Alright, thanks boys." He said. Ino then grabbed his pants and tugged on them a little.

"Daddy, is it going to be boring? Can't I just stay?" She asked him with her face pout.

"It won't be boring. It's not that important, just a friendly meeting. Besides, Shikamaru and Choji will be there as well as some other clan children." Inoichi told his daughter as he patted her head.

"But daddy! Their boring! And I don't know the other clan kids that well..." She said as she pouted at the ground. After a minute of sulking she gasped and looked up quickly surprising us all with her change in emotions.

"Daddy! What if Sakura-chan went with me?! I won't be bored and it's not like she can't, you said the meeting wasn't important!" Ino exclaimed excitedly with hope laced in her words. Unlike her happiness, I was shocked she would suggest me. What about her other friends? And going to another meeting which would be twice as uncomfortable as the last. I don't know if I was ready to be in the same location with powerful shinobi who could smell a lie a mile away. I still had a chance of not going. All Inoichi had to do is decline her request...he could do it right? I looked over to Ino uncertainly and saw her decked out with the most effective puppy dog look I have ever seen. I took a risk at looking over to Inoichi and sighed. He was completely defenseless against her.

"Alright, but have you even asked Sakura-chan or her mother?" He asked down to Ino, who smiled in victory and happiness.

"That'll be easy! Madoka-san likes me and Sakura-chan is already taken care of." She said happily and I blinked and tilted my head in confusion. Since when did I agree? Sensing my confusion she quickly turned around and frowned.

"Sakura-chan you are going...right?" She asked transforming her frown to a puppy dog look. I was left speechless at Ino's ability to persuade someone with just one look.

"Uhm..." I didn't know what to decide. I tried looking away but she grabbed my hands in hers, and levelled up her look with unshed tears.

_'Please. Please. Please.'_ Ino chanted in her mind. I sighed and nodded in defeat. She jumped up into the air.

"Yay! Thank you Sakura-chan!" She said happily and hugged me. I sighed again and hugged her back.

"So I guess all that's left is for Madoka-san to agree." Inoichi said with an amused chuckle. Ino broke the hug only to drag me inside the shop.

"Let's go ask your mom!" Ino shouted happily over her shoulder. I said nothing and just allowed her to drag me. If she used that face on Madoka there was no doubt she'd say yes. When we found them talking in a small table near the back of the flower shop, Ino wasted no time in asking her. Madoka had surprisingly agreed without the use of Ino's ultimate weapon is what I'm going to call it. And that was that, next week would come quickly and I would have no say in the matter...again.

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**Well as the title stated Sakura met five people in one day! Hopefully you guys liked it and next chapter Kakashi appears! Hope you guys continue to read and review!**


	19. Chapter 19

**Authors Note:** Hey guys! This chapter's pretty short but the next one I'm hoping to make it longer, since it'll be the clan meeting. Hopefully you enjoy and continue to read and review!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**The Rain**

**Sakura's POV**

Waking up at six in the morning always sucked. I sat up in bed and stretched out my arms, listening to the bones popping. I sighed and looked at the clock beside my bed that just rang a few moments ago. Why did I put an alarm?...That's right, to get in some early training that I wasn't able to yesterday. The meeting with the Uchiha's went well, but we got almost no training done. I then had to spend the rest of the day with Ino, which was relaxing. Even meeting Neji and his father wasn't that bad, finding out that I had to go to a clan meeting...now that was bad. Inner and I still have to train in order to not let our guards down. That day has to go according to whatever plan we figure out.

I hopped out of bed and walked into the bathroom to brush my teeth and wash my face. I dressed into black sweatpants and a plain purple tee-shirt, I also put on some black ninja shoes. I placed my hair in a pony tail now that it was past my shoulder blades. The bangs still framed my face but that could be taken care of with a clip.

I walked down stairs quietly and walked over to the back yard. Once outside I began my thirty minute stretches along with placing chakra in my weights. I decided in order to get more training in, I should finished all the katas in one hour. I did them all quickly instead of the usual slow pace. At seven thirty I practiced all four complete dances and the little bit of the lightning dance. When it got to be eight thirty, I started doing some chakra practices.

Since Madoka and Kioshi had yet to check on me, I decided to practice my chakra control. I walked over to the side of the door and concentrated my chakra to the soles of my feet. I placed my feet up against the wall, concentrating on sticking my feet to the wall. I did the same thing in the library not too long ago...but it wasn't easy to make it stick. If I add too much, the wall will crack but too little wont let me stick. I kept adding a little chakra after pulling my feet back each time to see if stuck. I opened my eyes when I felt it stick to the wall.

'Inner, you make sure that no one is coming.' I told her as I re-focused on my feet. Once I got one foot on the wall, matching the amount to the other foot was easy. I smiled as I began to slowly walk on the wall, making sure nothing changed. I got to a location I felt no one would be able to see me easily, and stood there, just concentrating on staying on the wall and not falling.

I learned a few things while I experimented. First, was the obvious fact that my chakra was rapidly depleting. So I made Inner make a mental note of figuring out a way to not waste so much.

Second fact was that the more I focused and memorized the feeling, the much easier it got to move around. It was just slow moving but that was good enough for me.

And the third observation which was by far the most impressive. If I switched the concentration over to Inner, she could keep us on the wall as I focused on something else. Our training was stopped at nine thirty when Madoka called for me.

I went up stairs and took a quick shower to get rid of all the sweat and dirt from training. Once done, I got dressed into a light blue dress that had purple tinted Hydrangea's on it. I walked back down stairs and ate breakfast with Madoka. I was told during breakfast that Kioshi was on a mission and that he would not be back for awhile. I suppose he was told either very early today or late last night after he had tucked me in.

After breakfast I asked Madoka if I could go meet a friend. She allowed me to go, not knowing that I would be going to the memorial stone instead.

"Here is some money to buy something along the way." Madoka said. I smiled up at her and nodded as I placed it in my pink bag. I left and made my way alone, without Sora who since yesterday afternoon had left to the Land of Water to deliver my letters to Haruki.

'lets go to Ino's flower shop.' I said as I turned quickly to the right.

**"What for?"** Inner asked.

'To buy some flowers of course. Last time we didn't take anything.' I answered her as I continued to run towards the shop.

**"That's right! Good idea, let's find some pretty ones."** She exclaimed happily. I nodded as I saw the building up ahead.

I slowed down and patted down the pink hair that I had let down in its usual look. The bangs still covered my forehead, but I moved them to the side so they wouldn't get in my way as much. I stepped inside the shop when I had deemed myself presentable.

"Welcome! Oh...Sakura-chan?" Naomi said, looking pleasantly surprised. I bowed and smiled up at her.

"Hello Naomi-san. I'm here to buy some flowers." I told her.

"Alright, is there something you have in mind?" She asked as she lead me to the flowers. I looked around for awhile.

"Hmm, would you perhaps have some Forget-Me-Not's" I asked looking up to her. She smiled and nodded.

"I do. Follow me." She said and lead me to the flowers farther in the back. Once she had gotten the one's I asked for she bundled them up in pretty purple transparent wrapping and tied it with a blue ribbon.

"There you go Sakura-chan!" She said smiling down at me. I nodded and took the flowers.

"Thank you Naomi-san." I said and paid for the flowers. I stepped outside and looked at the flowers.

'Simple is always best, besides the meaning behind them means exactly what I want to convey.' I said as I then made my way to the memorial stone.

It was twelve when I had arrived and I was surprised to feel a chakra next to the stone. When I sensed the chakra, I slowed down.

**"It's exactly like the one from last time...but different to the one that followed Naruto the other day. "** Inner informed. I nodded agreeing with her.

'Most likely it's Kakashi, so it's best to remember his chakra...also make sure he doesn't sense anything suspicious of our chakra.' I said as I slowed down even more a few feet away. I wasn't surprised he was here, since I know he comes everyday...but he's here kind of late. I walked and stopped just before the trees ended. I saw him standing there with a gloomy aura.

He wore his ANBU attire, which made me think perhaps he was going on a mission or coming from one. He looked really young, in his late teens maybe.

**"Kyaaa! He's noticed you! He's so hot!"** Inner informed as she kept her focus on the chakra, how she did it...I have no idea.

'Your a bit young.' I informed her. She just rolled her eyes at me and placed her hands on her hips.

**"I'm twelve and technically it's only because you made me that way. ****_And_**** your technically eighteen, just as old as he is right now. The only thing young is our body, which is a completely different thing compared to the mind where I can say he's hot if I want too!"** She said actually providing some facts this time.

'Yeah, yeah. Keep daydreaming.' I said and she huffed.

**"Well I will!"** She shouted. I smiled and rolled my eyes at her attitude.

Deciding that now was as good of a time as any to appear, I did just that. I slowly made my way over to the stone with the bundled flowers securely in my arms. Since inner was taking care of our chakra, I had to make sure he believed our friendliness...not that we were trying to be otherwise. Some people just didn't believe people could be friendly to them, which was pretty sad.

I made my way in front of the stone, giving a side glance up to Kakashi. He seemed calm, and although he still had that depressed aura around him, he was on alert. I saw him glance at me...or more specifically my hair. I didn't mind, everyone always stared at my hair. Turning my attention back to the memorial stone I placed the flowers in the middle and looked for the specific name I came to pray for. Once found, I closed my eyes and began the prayer. I decided to pray standing or the pretty dress would get dirty.

It wasn't the most comfortable silence, which was beginning to bug me. It felt as if I intruded on his private time...which I guess is true. I finished after a while and discreetly looked up to him. His face screamed complete indifference...but then again I could only see one eye so...that helped nothing.

'Now that I think about it...Isn't he supposed to wear his mask? Why is it off?' I asked Inner.

**"He probably doesn't see you as a threat."** Inner answered. That could be true. For all he knew, I was a three year old civilian child, who was bound to forget this meeting ever occurred.

**"Should we talk to him?"** Inner asked.

'I guess it should be fine...but what should I say?' I asked looking at the rest of the names on the stone.

**"Uhm that's your department, not mine."** Inner said, not really helping at all. I sighed softly and looked up to the sky. The clouds were darkening and I knew soon it would start to rain. I glanced up over at Kakashi.

"Ne, ninja-san." I said trying to gain his attention. It felt wierd for me to break the silence. Almost as if no speaking was aloud, it made me feel like I was in a library or something. He looked down at me but didn't say anything. I noticed his very indifferent demeanour was still present. Well he may not talk, but at least he's bound to listen.

"Do you like the rain?" I asked him once I knew he was listening. I looked back up when I figured he wouldn't answer my question. The sky was beginning to make those rumbling noises before a storm...Madoka would probably want me home before it starts.

"No." His late answer made me curious as to why he answered at all. I smiled over to him.

"Why?" I asked him like any curious child would.

"Rain is only a hinderance to ninja's." He answered after some thought. I smiled knowingly up at him.

"That's not completely true...What's the real reason ninja-san?" I asked taking the chance and risking whether he would find me suspicious. I looked back up to the dark clouds when a drop fell on my cheek. The rain should wait a little bit longer.

"It always rains at funerals..." He said quietly. Now that I thought about it, the weather did change whenever someone died here...but then, what about right now?...But, I suppose someone dies everyday, as sad as that is.

"I think its nice." I said honestly as I turned to look at him. He had a face of confusion and doubt.

"Why?" He asked honestly. Funny how one of the serious characters is talking to a child so seriously. I smiled at him and then looked at my hands. I had turned them, my palms facing the sky.

"Because I see the rain as the tears we don't cry...it doesn't have to be a funeral for it to be raining..." I said as I noticed the first few drops fall on my palms.

**"...Are you referring to your situation?"** Inner asked thoughtfully. I smiled at her question.

'Don't be silly. I have neither cried nor has it rained since I've been here, except for today...What?' I asked as I felt her doubtful stare.

**"...Nothing..."** She said quietly. I sighed and looked back up to Kakashi's blank face.

"Beside's ninja-san, don't you like running in the rain?!" I added in childishly so he wouldn't suspect me. He shook his head while his one eye closed. Was that a no? Or did he just find me childish and shook his head? He reached over and ruffled my hair. That was something I wasn't suspecting.

"Go home before you get sick." He instructed. I blinked up at him and smiled before nodding. I bowed to him and began to run home, trying to beat the rain.

**"Well I think that was a good first impression!"** Inner exclaimed happily. I smiled as I ran and watched out for puddles.

'That was only one of many. I'm sure everyone we meet wont just be once. We will most likely meet them a lot before the academy begins...well most of them...hopefully" I said as I jumped a pretty big puddle.

**"That's true. We still have awhile before the academy starts."** Inner said.

'And in the mean time, we study and befriend others. If you think about it, the only friends we've made here are only a few. Most of the others we've only just met and we still have a few missing here and there.' I said as I ran straight for the bakery instead of the house. It was in sight now and the rain had yet to come pouring down .

I had sprinted the final feet and had made it to the bakery. I was quite proud of myself. I didn't bump into anyone, I had beaten the rain, and I had talked to and hopefully cheered up Kakashi. To me Kakashi seemed like he had a very sad life. Since his fathers death all the way to the Fourth Shinobi World War. He had seen and been through a lot. Hopefully inner and I could help change that whole last part, for him and everyone else.

I stepped inside the bakery, thankful I wasn't soaking wet. Even if Madoka wasn't here, which I doubt it, I could still stay and wait for the rain to stop.

"Sakura-chan! Did the rain catch you?" Chouko asked me as she came over to me. I shook my head up at her.

"No. I just barely made it." I told her as I looked back outside and noticed the rain only just now starting to pour down hard.

"Well that's good! Go sit down, I'll get you something to munch on. Oh and your mother's up stairs." She informed me.

"Thank you Chouko-san." I said as she waved and went towards the second story. I brushed off the small droplets that clung to my dress and hair. There wasn't much, but it was best to take care of them now before Madoka saw them and she starts to worry I would get sick or something.

Once I had brushed all the visible droplets off, I made my way across the room to an empty table. As I made my way there, something bright red caught my eye and I just had to look. To my right in a table near a window sat the same woman I saw before, but this time she wasn't alone. Choji sat across the table and also noticed me...not that he would miss me. I practically stopped right in front of him, and who could miss this pink hair? The red that caught my attention was his mother shirt that was more eye catching than my hair.

He fidgeted in his seat. My guess was, he was thinking about whether he should risk the chance and greet me or suffer the teasing like the last times. He seemed to take courage in his mother's presence for he soon waved and sent me a small smile. Choji was such a gently child, very nice and kind. I returned the wave and smiled at him kindly.

**"He's sooo cute! In a teddy bear sort of way!"** Inner squealed and I wanted to smack her.

"Hello Choji-san." I greeted with a small bow. I turned towards his mother and bowed.

"Are you perhaps Choji-san's mother?" I asked her as she looked between us. Her son's courage filled gesture just surprised her completely.

"Yes, I am. My name is Takara Akimichi." She said with a cheerful smile. I smiled back up to her and bowed.

"It's very nice to meet you Takara-san. My name is Sakura Haruno. I just recently met your son...in fact only just yesterday; but I can tell we could be really great friends. Right Choji-san?" I said while I looked over to a surprised Choji. He nodded slowly and I looked back to his mother.

"Oh! Could you possibly be Madoka-chan's girl?!" She exclaimed. I nodded and smiled.

"Thats correct. How did you know?" I asked just for the sake of a new friendly conversation.

"You speak really well! And you have her facial features. If one knows what to look for, it's so easy to tell your their daughter!" She answered as she smiled down at me with a big smile.

"Sakura-chan! Here's your snack." Chouko said behind the counter.

"Please excuse me." I told them as I saw Takara nod. I walked over to Chouko and noticed there was three mini chocolate fruit tarts. I tilted my head up at Chouko. She leaned over the counter, trying to be unsuspicious.

"Shh...I added two more for your friends. It's always on the house for you Sakura-chan." She whispered with a smile and a wink. I chuckled and smiled brightly up at her.

"Thank you Chouko-san." I whispered back. She nodded and handed me the tray. I walked back to the table that was occupied by two Akimichi. I arrived and showed them the tray.

"Would you like one. Choji-san? Takara-san?" I asked them. They smiled and thanked me. Takara took one cheerfully while Choji timidly took one for himself.

"Please, sit down Sakura-chan!" She said cheerfully. I smiled and nodded my thanks.

"Thank you." I said as I sat in the space provided by Choji who scooted over. We ate our tarts while we talked about random things. Well Takara talked, and I did sometimes, Choji however, didn't really talk much. I think he was just shy and getting used to me. All in all, the conversations stayed simple from our favorite colors, and foods, to other simple things. She had asked me and Choji how we had met and we told her about yesterday and how I was invited to the party by Ino's request. It still hadn't sunk in but I know, later, I would feel the full force of awkwardness in being the only clanless person there. Well...they didn't know about what Haruki said but I decided to keep it that way anyway.

The rain had gone slowed down from earlier and was now a drizzle. Seeing the opportunity they had decided it was time to go. I walked them out and Takara made me promise that I would be there at the "party" she so called it. I had a sneaking suspicion that this "party" was meant to happen from the beginning. But what still puzzled me was still the reason as to why all the clans had to go. I thought there was some sort of competitive relationship between them.

**"Maybe it's not that bad right now...maybe they can still act nicely towards each other."** Inner supplied her thoughts.

'Well as long as they don't start fighting to see which one's better, then I guess it's okay.' I said as I went back to sit at the table we were occupying earlier. The rain's slow drizzle could still be heard and I looked at the clock. Three o'clock, maybe I should help around the bakery? There wasn't really anything I could do without getting caught by Madoka.

'I really should have brought a book or something.' I thought as I looked through my bag, ignoring Inner's bookworm comment. I guess for now all we can do is take things one step at a time.

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**Thanks again for all the support! I know this chapter was kind of short, but next one's going to be longer! And there's only a few more chapters until the time skip towards the massacre. So I hope you enjoyed it and like always if you liked it continue to read and review!**


	20. Chapter 20

**Authors Note:** Hey guys! The first part of the meeting begins in this chapter! There will be important information at the bottom. And so, I hope you like it and enjoy!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Seriously Scary**

**Sakura's POV**

Was I noticeable or unnoticeable?

That question went through my mind as I sat in my room and looked at the chaos that was occurring at the moment. It was Wednesday, the day of the meeting had finally arrived and Ino had arrived _extremely_ early. She had told me prior that she would come early to get ready with me. In fact, it was only yesterday. We had met, by her request, since it was my first clan meeting she wanted to tell me all the things they do in one. Ino practically told me all the boring parts that she hated and none of the important ones. She said I wouldn't need to know all that because it wasn't an important meeting.

Even though she told our mothers that it was to teach me about clan meetings, we had spent most of the day playing. And the moment had finally happened when she declared me her best friend. It was much more touching than I thought it would be. Without my realization, she had become my best friend too, we spent the most time together and it was enjoyable. I had a very nice time with her yesterday, she was very hyper but all in all, it was great to take my mind off the meeting.

Also the day before yesterday, on Monday, I had met with both Naruto and Tenten. Naruto was walking the streets, his usual isolated walk. I had obviously joined him on his walk and surprised him. I wanted to hit myself when he had said he had been looking for me and thinking that I had left. I reassured him that I would never leave without telling him...unless it was important of course. I spent all morning with him, making sure he left home happy. I invited him to eat somewhere with me. I said we had to eat something other than ramen because I was afraid that was all the poor boy ate. I liked ramen, I really did; but not for breakfast, lunch, and dinner everyday. I wanted to take him out to try different things. Of course it took us forever to find somewhere that would let Naruto eat inside. If it weren't for Naruto's insistence of not worrying about them, I would have, as Inner so kindly stated, **"Punched them into the ground!"**

So after finding a nice little dango stand run by a nice old lady who didn't really know about Naruto, we ate. He liked the dango, but still said Ichiraku's was the best in the world. After eating we went to a nearby park. We played for three hours. Never the same game, for Naruto kept choosing game after game he saw other kids playing and never got to try. I didn't mind, it was fun and seeing him truly happy made it all worth it. There was only one single annoying problem that made my mood go from happy to annoyed, faster than even I knew it could happen. Shortly after our last game, of monkey bar racing, I told him to wait and rest while I got drinks. He nodded and smiled happily.

It took a while to locate a place to buy drinks, what with my poor directional skills; but once I did, I quickly made my way back. The scene I was supposed to arrive to, was a happy Naruto swinging his little legs on the bench, waiting calmly if not a little hyper for my return. No, the scene in front of me made me see red. Whether it was from Inner's or mine or heck, even his parents will to protect the boy, the scene was just enough to make me mad. Some cocky little brats of about five or six, ninja's no doubt from their clothing, where bravely throwing rocks and other trash at Naruto. Oh and poor Naruto, he was squatting on the ground making himself look smaller and defenseless. He had his hands over his head, tears were threatening to fall out of the corners of his eyes and he was screaming for them to stop. Heck, they were all screaming, all for different reasons. I closed my eyes and fisted my hands. There was no need to fight some bratty children with anger, things wouldn't end well. So after contemplating my choices, I decided to make them feel what Naruto felt.

I set down the drinks on the ground and grabbed a few rocks that were on the ground. I straightened back up and narrowed my eyes at the four little brats. I held one rock in my hand as the left hand held the rest. I waited until one moved away from Naruto, I wasn't going to risk hurting him. When the first one stepped back, I threw the rock. Accidentally adding chakra, a habit from the kunai throwing practice. The rock whizzed past the boy cutting his cheek as if a papercut had caused it...except on his face. The rock continued on and hit the post behind them, creating and indention with cracks around it. I wasn't sure if an ANBU saw it since Inner and I felt nothing, but right at that moment, I didn't care. The boys had all stopped their attacks and looked behind Naruto towards the post. Naruto himself looked back to observe what had made that loud noise.

The one with the cut on his face, held his face and turned around. Naruto did as well and looked shocked and scared, but with a hint of happiness. Turning my attention back to the boys who were now looking at me with not so friendly expressions, I narrowed my eyes.

"Where you the one who threw that rock?!" One boy yelled across the field.

**"No shit dumbass!"** Inner yelled inside my head. Her fist clenched, wanting nothing more than to come out and hurt them. I kept my eye trained on the boys, for once letting Inner's rude behavior slide. This was an acceptable moment for such outbursts.

"There's no one else here." I said back to the boy. The boy only got angrier along with his friends.

"Hey you little brat, apologize!" One of the other boys yelled. I raised an eyebrow.

"First, you should apologize to Naruto-san." I said. They looked at me with a face full of incredibility.

"This demon?! No way!" Another boy shouted. There was only one boy that seemed to stay quiet. The only smart one.

"Then neither will I." I said as I got another rock ready to throw. They seemed to underestimate me, as I would assume and charged at me. The quiet one had ran much slower than the rest. I slid my foot forward slowly and Inner and I concentrated on releasing chakra and expanding it towards the kids. When I felt their feet touch the chakra, I concentrating on keeping them stuck in place.

"Wh-! What did you do to us?!" One of the boys shouted.

"Your not moving until you apologize." I stated, which was a lie. I could feel my chakra draining and my concentration slipping. I looked at their shocked faces. They looked uncertainly among each other. The smart quiet one turned his head back.

"I'm sorry!" He apologized with a frightened expression on his face. I smiled and slowly pulled my chakra away from his feet.

"See, now that wasn't so hard. Hey you! You shouldn't associate with bullies, now leave." I instructed the boy which was now free to move around. I didn't have to say it twice. The rest of the boys just continued to look and move around.

"Hey! Let us go!" They shouted. I narrowed my eyes and threw two more rocks, effectively creating matching cuts on their faces. The rocks dug into the ground behind them, creating small crater like imprints.

"Not until you apologize." I restated. The two who were hit held their stinging cheeks and turned around and apologized to Naruto. I retracted my chakra from their feet and saw them run away quickly. All that was left was the frightened leader.

"I won't apologize to this thing!" He shouted defiantly. My eyes widened at his stupid courage. I threw a rock at him, adding less chakra. The rock hit him on the arm, bouncing right off. He flinched and reached up to rub his arm. I knew it didn't hurt a lot, only about a pinching feeling.

"What did you say?" I asked unbelievingly. He flinched at the tone of my serious voice. I threw another pebble and watched him flinch at the impact on his leg. I took a few steps closer. I stopped when he had a look of horror. He quickly turned over and apologized over and over to a shocked Naruto. He turned back around to face me.

"I apologized...can I go now?" He asked me. I smiled up to the slightly taller kid.

"One last thing...If I ever see you hurting Naruto-san again...it won't be a little pebble I throw at you next time." I warned him, with a serious voice. He gulped and nodded rapidly. I nodded and allowed his freedom. I watched him run away, along with a flabbergasted Naruto.

"...Scary..." I heard a soft whisper behind me. Naruto was still on the ground but looked at the holes the pebbles made in the ground. I smiled and patted his head. Now that I was calmed down...I really shouldn't have done any of that. I mean, sure it was cool; but what I attempted was purely out of the moment and messing around with chakra was dangerous. I could have made the poor boys explode!

'Inner let's refrain from using our chakra on people right now.' I said.

**"...Alright...But those brats deserved worse! They hurt Naruto and almost made him cry!**" Inner yelled.

'But still...let's not do that until we get better at controlling it.' I said and she nodded reluctantly. I smiled and looked back down at Naruto.

"Stand up Naruto-san." I instructed the scared boy. He nodded his head and stood up. I noticed the dirt on his clothes. I reached over and brushed off the dirt on his back.

"Your clothes got dirty." I said as I looked over his clothes. He also looked and started brushing the dirt off.

"...Thanks a lot Sakura-chan...really...I mean it." He said with honesty. I smiled down at him.

"I already told you that I would help you out with all those bullies." I told him. He smiled shyly and nodded. I walled back to where I had placed the drinks. I picked them up and walked back to Naruto.

"Here." I said as I handed him one of the drinks. He took it with a smile.

"Thanks!...Ne, Sakura-chan...what kind of drink is this?" He asked. I frowned and walked over to him. The drinks didn't have pictures but they had the words on the can. I looked over the can in his hands. I just gave him an orange juice...surely he knew how to read those characters...right?

"It's orange juice...Do you not like that flavor?" I asked him. He grinned at me sheepishly and scratched his head.

"I like it! It's just...I didn't recognize that character very well..." He said embarrassed. Well I guess that does make sense...the only person who taught him was probably the Hokage. I looked down at Naruto.

"W-what is it? Why are you staring at me so seriously?" He asked and I came to a decision right then and there.

"Come one Naruto-san. Play time is over." I said as I began to walk in the direction I had come from. He followed behind me and soon caught up to me.

"What do you mean? You don't want to play anymore?" He asked a little sadly. I glanced at him over my shoulder. His shoulders slumped down, a sure sign he was sad.

"It's not that I don't want to play...Its more like its time to study." I said and looked back to the front.

"Study? What for?!" He said.

"Because you need to know more characters. You'll need it for when we get into the academy." I informed him.

"...But I can't buy any of that stuff...jiji usually does..." He said quietly.

"I know Naruto-san. That's why I'm going to buy them for you. No more of you having no study books, or clothes, and I would never let you go hungry." I said as we approached a small supply shop. Like always, there was always some form of trouble.

"What are you doing inside my store?! Get out! I'm not selling you anything!" Shouted an old man, perhaps in his forties. I stepped in front of Naruto protectively and narrowed my eyes up to the old man.

"Excuse me, but I'm the one who is buying something from this shop." I said clearly up to him. he looked at me, shocked but then frowned.

"I wasn't talking to you little girl. You can go look around." He explained and proceeded to glare at Naruto who tried to make himself as small as possible to hide behind me.

"I don't think you understand the situation mister. I'm here to buy things for my friend." I said.

"He's your friend? No way! I'm not selling that demon or his friends anything!" He said rudely. I narrowed my eyes and looked around, observing his merchandise. If I wanted him to learn and not bother Naruto again, I was going to have to be mean again.

**"Oooh I'm definitely watching his reaction! It's not everyday you get mad you know."** Inner smirked inside my head.

"Hey mister...How many customers do you get?" I asked him. He frowned and then had the nerve to look conceited.

"I get plenty of customers!" He said proudly.

"I'm sure it's mostly civilian...correct?" I asked him again. He nodded and looked annoyed by my questions.

"I sell to ninja too, but mostly civilian." He said.

"Hmm, then you must be aware of the exposure you are risking yourself to." I said seriously.

"What do you mean?" He asked uncertainly. I inwardly smirk in victory.

"You know if the people find out you denied a little girl to buy something within your store...well that doesn't sound good." I explained. His eyes widened.

"But the demon child is with you! They'll all understand!" He said, while I just raised and eyebrow.

"They didn't really see him here now did they. And who do you think they'll believe? You, a shop owner who judges people by the rumors he hears, whether they also believe the same rumor...or me? A little three year old girl, who respectfully obeys all the citizens and shinobi. And I'm not exactly sure what they would do to your store." I said confidently, though on the inside I was nervous. Hopefully he just allowed us to be on our way. I had no real authority over his store and although people may view him as mean, they wouldn't close his store. But then, the old man didn't know that. The old man gulped and I could see a sweatdrop form on his forehead.

"...Alright...but just hurry up!" He added in quickly. I sighed and smiled up at him.

"Thanks mister!" I said childishly as I grabbed Naruto's arm.

"And I promise to pay for it if you think Naruto broke something." I said as I pulled Naruto along the shelfs.

It took us thirty minutes to find everything. I would have given Naruto more time but the old man was starting to get anxious. I tried to make both parties happy. I left the store with a happy and cheerful Naruto beside me. I had gotten him pencils, paper, and a book of characters for him to learn, as well as some food. Food that wasn't ramen. We went our separate way's soon after, and I had instructed Naruto to work on his studies for the next time we met. We agreed to meet on Thursday, since I told him I would be busy on Wednesday.

On my way back home, I had bumped into Tenten and her parents. They looked familiar from the image I got from before. Tenten gasped and I refocused on her. She was happily surprised.

"Sakura-chan!" She exclaimed and ran the few steps over to me. She wore a cute little red chinese dress, with her hair up into a single bun. It was nice to see all the different styles the characters had, instead of the single look they always had in the anime/manga.

"Hello Tenten-san! How are you? Getting comfortable here in Konoha?" I asked her when she pulled back from the sudden hug she initiated.

"I've been great! And yeah, Konoha's awesome!" She answered excitedly. I smiled and nodded. Then I looked up to her parents.

"Hello. I'm Sakura Haruno." I greeted with a small bow and a smile. They returned the greeting with a smile of their own.

"Hello. We're Tenten's parents. I'm Akiko and this is my husband Kenshin." Tenten's mother introduced.

"It's very nice to meet you." I said honestly.

The rest of the day, I spent with Tenten and her parents. We went around town and I showed them some places around the village. We had a really nice time together. I told her that we should meet up sometime to practice. She had agreed readily.

All of that happened on Monday, which was hectic but fun. Today, however, had me being all jumpy. I was anxious about the meeting today. What if I messed up? They could tell if I was lying easily. I was brought out of my thoughts by Madoka who brought out a kimono that we got from Water.

"Come on Sakura. You have to get ready." She instructed as I sighed and jumped off the chair I had been sitting on. I had already taken a shower and had my bathrobe one. Ino was currently taking a shower in my bathroom. She was the one who insisted we wore kimono's even though I had a feeling we didn't need to. I walked over to Madoka and let her dress me. The kimono was a pretty lilac color with dark purple flowers. The obi was a pretty pink color. The kimono itself wasn't big or too fancy, it would be appropriate whether we had to wear them or not. Ino had stepped out of the bathroom with a blue robe on.

"Sakura-chan! That kimono is so pretty!" She exclaimed as ran over to me.

"Thanks Ino-chan. Where is yours?" I asked.

"Downstairs. I'll go get it. Sakura brush your hair in the mean time." Madoka instructed. I nodded and went over to the bathroom to retrieve the brush.

When I stepped out, with the brush in my hands, I noticed Madoka was back. She was also fixing Ino's kimono. I looked at her kimono as I brushed out my hair. Ino was going to wear a simple one, like mine but different colors. It was light blue with pretty little yellow stars. The obi was a slightly darker shade of blue with soft barely visible yellow lines.

"Your kimono is also very pretty Ino-chan." I told her. She sent me a smiled over her shoulder.

"Thanks! Ne, let's fix our hair!" She squealed.

The next hour or so was spent on arranging our hair. Ino had her hair parted on the left, and a braid was made with her bangs curling up into a single bun on top with the rest of her hair. she had pretty accessories dangling down from it. And the only hair down were her bangs on the right. Madoka had parted my hair on the left as well, so my long bangs didn't obstruct my eyes. She made a simple half pony tail with half my hair and curled it into a small bun. Ino helped place dangling accessories on my small bun. I also placed my necklace outside the kimono so it would be visible. The three crystal shards glittered beautifully.

It was five when we finished and we were getting ready to leave. The meeting had been set to start around four, so we only went and hour over, because Ino insisted we play in the morning. Before leaving, Madoka handed me three scrolls. They were pretty heavy, and Ino had graciously helped carry one. Madoka had explained that she was sending over some snacks, since she knew all the clans were assembling, she prepared a lot. Ino's eyes had sparkled with delight. During our playtime yesterday, I had figured out that Ino and her family loved going to buy pastries at the bakery. I asked if the bakery was really popular and she gasped in shock. Even as a child Ino was all about the gossip. She wouldn't pry into important matters but she could get good information. She had informed me after the shock had worn off, that it was known to everyone, and I had a hard time believing that _everyone_ knew it.

We were back to the thought I had before. Did people notice me that much? Ino and I kept stopping every time some one talked to us. They asked us many questions which Ino was more than happy to answer.

After we walked a bit further, the people on the way were much less. We took this time to talk and plan what to do during the meeting. She had also asked me where I had gotten my necklace. I told her that it was given to me on my third birthday from my parents and grandfather. I also told her that I was planning on adding a crystal of my own when I found the right one. I didn't tell her I was going to get two. One that represents me and one for Inner. She surprised me in stating that she really wanted to give me one. The reason being, that we were best friends and she wanted me to always remember her. I thought it was very sweet and a nice idea. So I told her I would gladly accept.

"We're here..." She said with a tired mumble. I noticed the gates up front, and my body started to tighten and feel heavy. All the chakra signatures I felt inside where massive and there was a lot of them.

'...Inner...you know what to do.' I reminded her to cover up our chakra. She had to make sure we didn't slip, not even once. The plan we had come up with was really simple. _Try not to catch attention._ That was our plan, it was simple but I'm sure with Ino by our side, there won't be much to do. Perhaps we could even stay with all the mothers and try not to move around so much. We were a couple steps away from the gates and I was already getting nervous.

**"Calm down! How bad can it be? We already know some of them, the rest shouldn't be that bad."** Inner said, while I walked inside following behind a trudging Ino. Yeah...how bad could it be? Meeting new people wasn't bad...them finding out my secrets was bad. But that wouldn't happen...right? The moment the gates opened and I stepped inside, I froze and cursed my luck.

'This...is very bad...' I thought as I looked around.

**"Holy crap! When they said all clans...they meant All clans. I figured it would only be a few!"** Inner panicked inside my head. Passing the gates lead us to a view of the front of a traditional house. It was nice and beautifully...but the architecture was the last thing on my mind. Most of the kids were on the right, some were on the grass, while others seemed to wander around.

To the left of the house was a pair of shoji doors opened with a table filled with food on top. Most of the women were near a smaller table in the same room. They were dressed casually, some actually wore simple kimonos along with the males. The men, however, where standing in the middle. Most likely greeting and talking to each other. There was around seven men as of now. The rest had yet to arrive I suppose, but I was extremely worried about this group of men. I agreed with Inner, I had no idea some of them would even come. My surprise wasn't from seeing Fugaku, Shikaku, Choza, Inoichi, or even Hizashi...No, the shock was from seeing Kakashi along side of the Hokage! Sure, I knew they were from clans but...I didn't think they came to this sort of thing.

**"Oh no! Oh no! What do we do?!"** Asked Inner with a shout as she ran in circles around my head while she gripped her own.

'...All we can do is stick to the plan, besides how hard can it be to go unnoticed?' I said as I waited for Ino to close the gates.

**"Hello! We have pink hair!"** Inner shrieked.

'True...but what's important is for you to control our chakra. Don't let them get suspicious, and most of all, don't let the Hokage suspect anything...' I instructed.

**"I get it but why so cautious over the Hokage? Isn't it just as bad if the others find out?"** She asked as she started to concentrate on our chakra. She was making our emotions insensible.

'I can understand your confusion, but its very different. If the others find out, then we have a small chance to make others believe us. If the Hokage finds out...then we won't stand a chance. He has the authority to take us away from Madoka and Kioshi, because we aren't the real Sakura...well you are, but not me. I don't even want to think about what he would do to us for the sake of protecting Konoha.' I explained and re-focused on the things around me. Ino had finished closing the gates and turned around with a huff. She noticed all the women out in the far left.

"Mommy we're here!" Ino shouted gaining the attention of everyone...well, besides some kids. I winced and knew that if I were to open my eyes, I would see them all staring in our direction. I could already feel a prickly sensation, probably a warning.

**"...Oh Ino-pig..."** Inner said as she face palmed herself.

"Ino! Sakura-chan!" Called out Naomi, effectively adding eyes to us. I wanted to cry! Our whole plan would be ruined in the span of a few minutes! I contemplated on my chances of succeeding in my plan as I saw Naomi coming towards us. She was sporting a simple kimono but her smile and the glitter in her eyes made her look very young and very pretty. When she arrived, I did my usual bow and greeting to which she returned. I had felt my necklace dangle with my bow and smiled as I looked at it glitter with the sun.

"You look cute Ino, Sakura-chan!" She exclaimed as she looked at our outfits. Ino wasted no time.

"Thanks mommy!...Ne mommy, can you take this? Sakura-chan and I just walked a billion miles carrying these things!" Ino informed. I chuckled and rolled my eyes at her exaggeration. Ino could really help change my worries into nothing with only a few words. Naomi laughed softly and took the scroll from Ino.

"Is that so?...Oh Sakura-chan, shall I take those from you?" She asked me. I shook my head up to her.

"No thank you. I'll help take them." I said with a pointed stare over to Ino, who pouted. She groaned and pulled slightly on one of the scrolls in my hands.

"Well I guess I can help...its only a few more steps anyway..." She said quietly with a small blush on her cheeks. I chuckled at her childish actions. I looked back up to Naomi and nodded.

"Alright then, I'll see you in a while." She said as she waved goodbye. I waved back calmly while Ino was more vocal.

"Bye mommy!" She waved goodbye but stopped and looked behind her when she felt my stare trained on her.

"You lied about the clothes." I said and watched her nervously brake eye contact with me.

"Well...I really wanted to...but I knew if I asked you, you would have said to go casual..." I shook my head and sighed at her silliness. I looked up when I heard sniffling coming from her.

"...I..sniff...thought you might like my idea...sniff..." She said sadly with an equally sad face. It seemed like it was my turn to look away. She was pulling out her ultimate weapon that I knew I was no match for. If I didn't stop her now we would be getting unwanted audience...that is, if we weren't already.

I quickly smiled up to her brightly and lifted a foot to twirl myself.

"No Ino-chan...I was just teasing! I like your idea!" I said with a lift of my arms, spreading out the kimono's long sleeves. In an instant her face changed from sad to completely cheerful.

"Yay! I knew you would love it!" She exclaimed excitedly.

"Ino! Sakura-chan!" We looked over to see who had called to us. Inoichi could be seen not to far away, surrounded by the others. He had his hand up in a gesture to call us over. Gods...it was finally time to face them...I wasn't prepared at all. Ino called back her agreement and quickly grabbed my wrist and proceeded to drag me, forgetting about her earlier compliant of the heavy scrolls. She ran towards the group of men without knowing my anxiety.

"Ino-chan! Not so fast!" I called out to her as I kept tripping on the rocks. I wouldn't want to look like a klutz in front of them now would I...but then again, I recall already doing that with Hizashi. Ino had not listened to me at all, perhaps I said it too quietly, who knows. When we arrived she had bounced over to Inoichi and hugged him around the legs tightly.

"Hahaha, you looks so cute Ino!" He exclaimed as she pulled back only slightly and looked up at him with his identical eyes.

"Thanks Daddy! And look at Sakura-chan! Isn't she adorable?!" She squealed as she quickly walked over to me, pulling me closer inside the circle. I felt my nerves sky rocket as I felt eyes on me. I focused all my attention on Inoichi at the moment, since he was the one I was most comfortable with. I bowed slightly and smiled up at him like usual.

"Hello Inoichi-sama." I greeted calmly, trying my best to calm down. Inoichi smiled down at me kindly and patted my head gently, a gesture I was finding to be done to me constantly.

"Hey Sakura-chan. Your right Ino, she does look adorable." He greeted me and answered Ino's question. I smiled and quietly thanked him for the compliment, while Ino giggled childishly as she looked at me. She knew very well I didn't mind getting compliments from people I knew but with all the ones we received earlier...she knew I was a bit fed up with them.

"But Ino, why did you guys come an hour late? Surely it wasn't because you were getting ready?" Inoichi asked. It was my turn to chuckle and look at Ino. Unlike me, however, she had a small blush across her face.

"That's because Ino-chan procrastinated this morning." I answered his question, getting a pout from Ino.

"Nuh uh! I wasn't procra...pro...Augh! Sakura-chan!" Ino said with frustration at not being able to say the word. The adults around us seemed to find the situation amusing, for they soon chuckled at Ino's exasperation.

"So this little girl is the one who beat you in a game of Go Fugaku?" Said Shikaku as he leaned forward to get closer to our height. I blinked up at him surprised, I'm pretty sure they noticed. I saw a knowing glint pass through his eyes.

"Eh?" Out of everything intelligent I could have said, my first word to him, which wasn't even a word, had to be that. I wanted to slap myself for saying that. Before I could redeem myself, I heard a gasp beside me. Looking over to the source, which was Ino. I saw that she had a surprised look.

"Oh my gosh! Sakura-chan doesn't know what to say?!" I frowned at her comment.

"What do you mean Ino?" Asked her father, she looked over to him.

"Sakura-chan always knows what to say." She said it in a matter-of-fact sort of way. I shook my head and focused on the real conversation.

"Ne, how do you kno-"I was abruptly cut off by a call behind me.

"Sakura-chan!" I turned over and noticed that it was Shisui who had called out to me.

"Oh...I see." I said answering my own unfinished question. Of course it was Shisui who would talk about that sort of thing to everyone. He walked up to me and was followed by Itachi, Mikoto, and grumpy/surprised Sasuke.

**"Kyaaa! It's the cuties!"** Inner squealed inside my head, but I promptly ignored her. I bowed slightly over to them.

"Hello." Is all I said as they greeted me back.

"You look so cute Sakura-chan!" Mikoto exclaimed as she smiled down at me. She was the only one with a simple kimono while the others wore casual clothes. I thanked her for the compliment.

"Sakura-chan I didn't know you would be here." Shisui said.

"Ino-chan invited me." I answered their question and looked back to Ino, who had turned very quiet. I noticed she had a small blush on her face but wasn't hiding or stuttering, which was good...it got very quiet soon after that I think even the adults felt the uncomfortable shift of atmosphere. Since I didn't like this kind of silence I decided to do everyone a favor and break it. I turned back to Skikaku and bowed.

"I didn't properly introduce myself. I'm Sakura Haruno." I said and straightened back up. I made direct eye contact with Hizashi and then Fugaku when I got back up. And I made a point to smile and nod towards them.

"Well it's nice to finally meet you Sakura-chan. I've heard a lot about you recently from different people." He said and I couldn't help but glance at Shisui. He grinned down at me and scratched the back of his head sheepishly.

"Yeah...I kind of told them about your visit..." He said truthfully. I looked up to Fugaku then and tilted my head up at him. Did he not care if others knew about his lose? He closed his eyes and crossed his arms.

"I couldn't really stop him when he's in one of those days." He said to my unspoken question. I couldn't help the small giggle that came out.

"When we were told that a three year old beat Fugaku, I couldn't believe it. Now that I've met you in person, I can believe it." Stated Choza. I smiled up at him and bowed.

"It's nice to meet you. I've already met your wife and son, their both very nice." I said and straightened up. He smiled kindly down at me.

"I have also been told about that." He said.

"So you really did beat Fugaku, Sakura-chan?" Spoke up Hizashi for the first time. I looked up to him and smiled.

"He was really tough to beat." I said and smiled at Fugaku.

"But in the end you still managed to beat him." Said the Hokage. I was wondering when he would join the conversation.

"Hello, Hokage-sama." I bowed to him, a little lower than the rest.

"It's very good to meet you Sakura-chan. I was here when Shisui told us about your accomplishment, and it seems to me that you know everyone here." He commented. I shook my head.

"Not everyone." I said as I looked up to Choza and Shikaku. They were smart enough to take the hint and introduce themselves.

"I'm Choza Akimichi and I'm glad not only Ino-chan has made a new friend but Choji as well." He said and I smiled up to him.

"Me too. I hope you and Shikamaru get along well. I'm Shikaku Nara by the way." He said casually and I nodded.

"I hadn't known you and Kakashi knew each other." Hiruzen stated making everyone's eyes turn to Kakashi. I smiled up to the quiet Kakashi.

"I haven't officially met him." I said with a bow to Kakashi.

"I'm Kakashi Hatake." He said giving a rather simple introduction.

"It's nice to meet you." I said with a smile. He bowed towards me, I suppose in agreement. It was really hard to understand teenage Kakashi, he was much quieter and kept to himself.

"Great! We all know each other! Lets eat!" Exclaimed Shisui rather loudly. He would be great friends with Naruto.

"Hold on. Before that, I want to ask little Saukra-chan something." Shikaku said, gaining everyone's attention.

"Yes?" I asked politely.

"If your able to beat Fugaku in Go, I would really like to see how good you are in Shogi." He said looking down at me. My eyes widened at his sudden request. And at that moment, there was only one thing going through mine and Inner's mind.

_**"Aww crap!" **_

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**Chapter 20 complete! Hopefully you enjoyed it and the next chapter continues into the clan meeting with interesting developments. unfortunately I bring sad news for readers who are excited to read more. I won't be updating on Saturday because I'm going to be really busy, but Sunday I will have it uploaded for sure. Sorry for keeping you guys in suspense with the future developments, what with the Hokage being there, hint hint. Anyways, like always continue to read and review! I enjoy reading all of them, whether there short or long. They inspire me and give me a general idea for what you want and how I'll add it to my plot to make you guys happy.**


	21. Chapter 21

**Author's Note:** Hello everyone! Hope you enjoy the chapter and continue to read and review!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Suspicion and Ninja Games**

**Sakura's POV**

I looked on as he watched me with an observant gaze and waited expectantly for me to agree with his request.

"I'm sorry...but I don't know how to play Shogi." I answered truthfully.

"Oh? Is that so?" He said. I nodded and waited for him to speak. It was true though, I've never played Shogi.

"Well that can't be. You have great skill's in Go. Now imagine what you could be like in Shogi." He said with a curious glint in his eyes.

"If your interested, I wouldn't mind showing you the basics." He suggested. I raised an eyebrow also curious but for a different reason. I wanted to know why he wanted to teach me.

"If your sure it won't be a bother..." I answered. He smiled and nodded.

"It's no problem." He reassured.

"Alright then, whenever you want too is fine with me." I stated in which he nodded. Ino who was beside me groaned.

"No, not you too! He's already brainwashed Shikamaru!" Ino stated.

"Why not Ino-chan, there fun, and I'm sure Shikamaru-san likes them too." I told her. She pouted, knowing she could do nothing to change my mind.

"But there old man games..." She whispered. I smiled as I looked at the men's faces around us.

"Ino-chan are you calling us old?" Shikaku asked with amusement.

"Well...no, but..." She didn't finish her sentence, but she didn't have to. They were only teasing. Soon they started laughing at Ino's discomfort in answering the question. I tried to loosen her embarrasment by changing the subject. I poked her on the side, making her flinch from the ticklish feeling.

"Lets go take these over to your mother." I said to Ino, who nodded.

"Alright, let's go." Said Ino as she began to walk in her mothers direction. I breathed out a sigh of relief as we walked away.

"Wait Sakura-chan! I'll go with you!" Exclaimed Shisui as he made his way over to us. He was followed by Mikoto leaving the others to talk with the men. We arrived in front of the other women.

"Oh Sakura-chan you made it!" Exclaimed Takara as she stood and walked closer to us. I bowed and greeted her. I then lifted up the scroll in my hand.

"Oh! Is that another scroll from Madoka-chan?" Takara asked with excitement. I nodded and looked over to Ino. She also lifted up her scroll.

"She knew there would be a lot of people, but she didn't know exactly how many, so she just made a lot." I informed her. She waved her hand in a gesture meaning not to worry.

"Oh, don't you worry Sakura-chan. These will be some of the first things gone. The kids will skip the food and go straight for these." She said down to me with a grin. I smiled and nodded.

"Oh, I can't wait to eat some!" Exclaimed Shisui. Ino soon joined him and jumped in excitement.

"I love them too!" She said with a big smile. I nodded agreeing with both of them.

"Sakura-chan, will you be going with Ino to meet the rest of the kids here?" Asked Mikoto. I smiled and nodded up to her.

"If Ino-chan wants too." I answered looking over to Ino, who grumbled.

"I guess we can go see Shikamaru and Choji..." She said not really putting any effort to hide her reluctance.

"Shisui, will you help unseal these scrolls and place them on the table?" Asked Mikoto.

"Sure thing!" Shisui readily agreed. He had this sneaky glint in his eyes and I knew he would steal a few before the others could.

"Here Sakura-chan, Ino!" Said Takara, who had plates with food. She handed us each a plate and we thanked her.

"Right now is just a buffet type lunch, later we will have dinner inside." Explained Naomi. We nodded and excused ourselves to go find the other two. Now that I thought about it, where was Neji? And the others must still be coming, because they were nowhere in sight.

"Ino, where are you heading?" Asked Inoichi who noticed us leaving the groups.

"...To Shikamaru and Choji..." She answered. The adults seemed to already be used to Ino's thoughts about the boys. They didn't seem to mind that she was very open with her thoughts.

"They should be around that tree." Informed Shikaku. I looked over to the tree he had pointed towards and sure enough there was two small bodies laying on the ground. I turned back and bowed in thanks, I then proceeded to poke Ino's side. She squeaked and frowned at me. I tilted my head towards the tree and began to walk towards it, knowing she would follow.

**Normal POV.**

"Ino-chan is very good friends with Sakura-chan huh?" Asked the Hokage who looked on with a gentle smile on his face. The other men and Itachi and Sasuke also looked onto the backs of Ino and Sakura.

"That's right. They met not to long ago and their friendship is already strong. Ino herself has proudly stated only yesterday that she was now Sakura's best friend." Inoichi informed as he smiled at his daughter and friend.

"Ino-chan has definitely been learning to control herself a bit more. Could that possibly be Sakura-chan's doing?" Asked Choza, referring to Ino's less emotional outbursts for certain situations. Inoichi nodded over to his friends.

"Yes, it sure looks that way. Sakura herself is also very comfortable around Ino." Stated Inoichi.

"I can see why. Ino-chan has a very strong ability to lead others." Said the Hokage.

"I believe the reason why Ino can lead her so well is because little Sakura-chan lets her." Shikaku told the group his opinion. The others stayed quiet as their minds processed his words.

"That seems very plausible." Stated Hizashi, who gained the groups attention.

"When I first met Sakura-chan, she was alone but she seemed fine with it, even for a three year old. Neji is already four about to be five in a few more months, but he still has trouble being alone in the streets." Said Hizashi.

"Wait! She was alone?!" Asked Choza, worried that such a young child could get lost. Hizashi merely nodded answering his question.

"Actually, when I met her, she was also alone." Said Kakashi. They all looked over to Fugaku who was the only one left to say how they had met. He closed his eyes and crossed his arms.

"I met her when she came to practice with the kids. It was Shisui and Itachi that had met her before I did." He gave his answer. The adults proceeded to look down at Itachi, wondering if he would tell them how they had met.

"She was alone when Shisui and I found her." He answered their unspoken question.

"You found her?" Asked Inoichi as he began to worry about young Sakura's safety.

"She was in a rarely used training ground for genin. She was practicing katas when we walked into the grounds. Shisui then started teaching her how to throw kunai." Itachi finished relaying his meeting with Sakura, leaving out the tree incident.

"And then...how did it go?" Asked Shikaku. Itachi looked over to Sakura and Ino who had stopped along the way and started talking. Itachi wasn't very sure as to whether to tell them about what happened or keep it between them. He knew that it would peak their interest and label her as a young prodigy. He knew if she were to be seen as such, she would have to train harder to meet their expectations.

"Itachi?" Asked the Hokage as they all looked to the silent boy. Itachi wouldn't be able to lie to the Hokage and even if he did, his father would certainly be able to tell. He would later make him tell him and he could not keep it from Fugaku. Deciding to tell them about the situation that happened he just wished Sakura wouldn't be mad.

"She hit none of the targets, however..." Itachi stopped his sentence, thinking about how to phrase his next question.

"However?" Asked Fugaku also interested in what was keeping his son from speaking.

"However, she demonstrated remarkable skills in chakra control...well, she knew what she was trying to do anyway." He said as he remembered the surprisingly different outcome he was predicting.

"What do you mean Itachi? Can you tell us exactly what happened?" Hiruzen asked the young boy in front of him who held so much promise for the future.

"Tell you what exactly?" Shisui said as he quickly appeared right next to Itachi, with an arm slung across his shoulders.

"About your meeting with Sakura-chan." Shikaku answered, eager to find out what was so hard to explain about the young girl.

"Oh...uhm..." Shisui didn't know what to say and uncertainly looked over to Itachi. Itachi felt Shisui's stare on him and looked up and nodded.

"Well, we met Sakura-chan when she was practicing her kata's. Uhm...afterwards I showed her the basics of throwing kunai...even though she wasn't paying attention." He said with a laugh, Itachi himself chuckled at the memory of that moment. Sakura_ had_ been listening but zoned out throughout shisui's instructions. They had been very amused when she had somehow snapped out of her trance like state. As a form of teasing her they didn't tell her they knew about her zoned out moment. She of course was smart enough to suspect something but never asked anything.

"Anyways...she started to do exactly like what I did...oh and when I mean _exactly_, I mean it. She copied my stance and was about to throw the kunai when she closed her eyes. Itachi and I were a bit confused by that but then her eyes flew open and she threw the kunai. At first, it was pretty funny. Her kunai swirled to the right, completely missing the target." Shisui said remembering the moment.

"So...she missed?" Asked Hizashi incredulously. He along with everyone were expecting something different.

"Yes. Her kunai then hit a tree and ripped through the whole left side due to the chakra she enhanced her weapon with." Itachi concluded.

"What?! Ripped the whole side of a tree!" Exclaimed Choza, shocked about what he heard a three year old could do.

"Yeah. We were pretty surprised too. We knew that she knew what she was trying to do by her reaction." Stated Shisui as he looked over to the girl.

"She looked shocked at first which was mixed with confusion, probably from her miscalculations in chakra. When she remembered she wasn't alone, she had glanced at us. I think she was trying to hide her abilities from people, but we couldn't figure out why, so we invited her over to find out. The whole meeting went_ way_ different and we only found out she was really intelligent. " Shisui finished his re-telling of their meeting.

"I believe we should say what happened during her visit." Fugaku spoke up, looking only at Sakura.

"We were already told." Shikaku said.

"Not all of it." Fugaku stated as he looked over to Hiruzen.

"You know what happened, but you don't know why it did." He stated as he looked over to Shisui.

"Sakura-chan...well she made it a point in telling us that she was definitely not starting the academy early. We tried to understand why, but she always evaded giving us that answer." Shisui said as he looked over to Itachi.

"When tou-san asked her to fight with me, she denied outright, even with the possible financial assistance from our clan. She challenged tou-san with the confidence to win." Itachi explained. He too was grateful he did not have to fight Sakura on that day.

"Hmm, I always did think there had to be a reason for the game to happen." Shikaku stated while he glanced over to Sakura, who was patting Ino's head.

"It appears that little Sakura-chan is hiding a secret." Shikaku stated.

"Hmm, if so we must find out exactly why she doesn't want to start the academy early, even with all that potential." Hiruzen stated as he observed the young girl.

"Actually...there's one thing bothering me..." Shisui said, gaining their attention.

"And what's that?" Inoichi asked. Shisui scratched his head in a confused manner.

"Well...when she fired the kunai which obviously contained chakra, why could I not sense anything? Surely there would have been a slight change to her chakra, right?" He asked the men.

"Now that you mention that Shisui, I remember meeting Sakura-san before you, with Sasuke...right?" He asked looking down at the boy beside him. Sasuke was shocked that he was being added into such a serious conversation...even if it was related to a pink haired girl.

"That's right nii-san. It was at the library, when we caught her standing on the bookshelves." Sasuke told his audience.

"Standing...as in chakra walking on them?" Asked Choza. All this amazing information about one little girl was becoming more surprising by the second.

"That's right, and I could also barely sense her chakra. It felt normal as it should be to every person, but when one uses chakra, someone who uses it more should have sensed even a small rise. I felt nothing, just normal chakra in a small girl." Itachi said.

"Is she suppressing it?" Asked Kakashi as he looked at Hiruzen. The old man instead continued to observe the girls movements.

"I'm not sure. Such skill would be practiced by a chunnin about to be jounin. When one starts training on suppressing chakra they have to be solely concentrated on their chakra. Sakura-san wouldn't act the way she does. She acts as if everything's normal and she doesn't appear to be struggling to suppress her chakra." Said Hizashi.

"Hmm, then that's only one more thing to ask when we confront her...for now, let's just observe her." Stated Hiruzen as they all turned to see Sakura and Ino begin to walk again.

**Sakura's POV**

We were finally moving towards Shikamaru and Choji. Ino had insisted on stopping half way to ask me about Sasuke. This would be the first time she had seen the boy and like Inner she crushed on him immediately. I teased her a bit by daring her to go talk to him. She had blushed and shook her head, saying she wouldn't do it without me. I had chuckled at her shyness and patted her head. I told her before this night was over, I would have them acquainted. She had thanked me and made me promise to do it.

We finally arrived to the location under the tree, where Shikamaru was laying down and Choji sat. I tilted my head down at the boys who seemed to be relaxing.

'That's right. Shikamaru liked watching the clouds.' I thought as I looked up to the fluffy clouds that were moving across the sky slowly.

"Hey guys!" Ino greeted nicely trying to be as tolerant of their hobbies. I had asked her in exchange for introducing her to Sasuke, she had to be nice to the others. She had agreed readily at the time, but it seemed she was only now seeing how difficult it would be for her.

Shikamaru opened his eyes and raised an eyebrow at Ino's questionable change in attitude. I noticed her trying really hard not to nag at Shikamaru for doing something as silly as watching clouds. Being the nice person that I am, I changed the topic. I bowed down slightly to the boys.

"Hello Shikamaru-san and Choji-san." I greeted. They both looked over to me. Shikamaru nodded up to me with a lazy wave, while Choji smiled timidly while saying hello in a very soft voice. I turned over to Ino.

"Let's sit here and eat." I suggested. Ino nodded reluctantly. I then looked over to the boys.

"Do you mind?" I asked politely. Choji shook his head and shikamaru just shrugged his shoulders. We then proceeded to sit down beside the boys.

"Did you guys eat yet?" Ino asked trying to start a conversation.

"Nah, not yet." Shikamaru answered. I tilted my head and extended my plate over to him.

"You guys can have mine. I can share with Ino-chan." I told them. Shikamaru lifted himself up by the elbows and looked at me.

"Are you sure? I don't mind but what about you?" He asked. I shook my head and handed him the plate.

"I'm not that hungry, and Choji-san's mother put a lot on our plates." I answered. He nodded and sat up all the way before taking the plate. He moved it over so it could be held beside the two boys. I looked back over to Ino and we all proceeded to eat. Ino being the most talkative in our little group decided to take it upon herself to retell them about our day. Of course most of the time they zoned out but it was Ino talking, so they couldn't just zone her out. She was very keen on telling them everything, to the most smallest of conversations. They soon found out the reason for our lateness, to my kimono from water to my necklace and future promise. I didn't mind, it wasn't like it was top secret information. When we finished eating, Ino proposed we play something.

"How about ninja?!" She asked excitedly, but it was Ino, so we couldn't just say no.

"Ino, how about we get Sasuke-san and Neji-san to play and maybe when the other kids arrive they could too?" I asked her. Her eyes brightened in happiness. She nodded readily and extended her hand out to help me get up. I smiled and reached for hand.

_'Yay! I get to meet Sasuke-kun!'_ She thought in her mind. She pulled me along towards her father and the others not once stopping her mind from thinking about how cute Sasuke looked.

**"Outer, don't say anything or Ino-pig will hear it, just listen to me."** Inner stated. I nodded my head.

**"Sasuke-kun and the others have been watching you for some time. I think their observing us. Just try to act calm and don't worry about your chakra, I have that covered."** I sighed and nodded. We soon arrived and I noticed that Inner was correct, before we had even arrived they had already been watching us. It gave me bad feelings.

"What's up Ino, Sakura-chan?" Inoichi asked. Ino let go of my hand and looked up to him.

"We're going to play ninja and we wanted to know if...uhm...the other kids wanted to play." She explained. I smiled at Ino's shy personality when it came to Sasuke.

"Oh, well that's a nice idea. How about it, Sasuke-san?" Asked Inoichi. Sasuke looked surprised but then looked over at me. Why was he looking at me for? He then looked over to his brother and father.

"You can go if you want to Sasuke." Stated Itachi. Sasuke looked back to us and nodded. I smiled and looked over to Ino who had a small blush across her face. She noticed me smiling at her and her blush became slightly darker. I chuckled softly and decided that it was enough of teasing her. I grabbed her hand and pulled her slightly along. I looked over to Sasuke and tilted my head over to the two waiting kids under the tree.

"Let's go Sasuke-san...Oh, wait. Hizashi-sama, do you know where I could find Neji-san?" I asked Hizashi. He smiled and nodded.

"He might be inside the house, probably in the kitchen getting something to drink." He answered.

"Alright, thank you." I said and began to walk back towards the others, while pulling Ino along. We made our way back to the others, Sasuke right behind us. Ino was having trouble focusing on the moment and only thinking about how to introduce herself.

"We're back. All we need to do is find Neji-san. Shikamaru-san, Hizashi-sama said that he was probably in the kitchen. Would you take me?" I asked him. He nodded over to me.

"Sure, come on." He said and we began to walk towards his house. The others followed since they appeared to be uncomfortable staying behind. We walked up the steps and walked through the halls. We turned left and then continued to walk straight and then turned right. Shikamaru slid the door open and a kitchen was seen on the other side.

"Here it is." Shikamaru said while yawning. Sitting by the table and drinking tea I suppose, was Neji. He turned when he heard us.

"Hello Neji-san. We came to ask you if you wanted to play ninja?" I asked him as he lowered his cup and looked over to us surprised. He stayed quiet for awhile and then nodded.

"I'll play." He said while standing up. He grabbed his cup and took it towards the kitchen part of the room.

"Oh? Done already Neji-san?" Asked a woman, I could not see. Neji nodded up to the person and the cup was taken from him and placed into the sink. The woman's back could be seen. She wore a simple kimono and had brown hair up in a bun. She turned and I could see she had brown eyes as well.

"Oh hello!" She stated once she saw us by the door. I bowed up to the woman.

"Hello, I'm Sakura Haruno." She smiled down at me.

"That's right! Ino-chan's friend! It's nice to meet you, I'm Yoshino Nara!" She exclaimed. I nodded up to her as Neji walked over to us.

"It's nice to meet you. We came to ask Neji-san to play." I informed her.

"Oh how nice! You kids go on and play!" She said as she waved happily. We left the room and started walking back outside. When we made it outside, we gathered in a circle in the outside hallway. Shikamaru, Choji and I looked over to Ino, who in situations such as these would take control. She was rather quiet until I nudged her on the side. She seemed to snap out of her shyness. She cleared her throat and smiled widely at me...oh, that's right.

"First of all, let's give introductions. You all know I'm Sakura." I stated and looked over to Ino.

"Hello! I'm Ino Yamanaka!" She said all bubbly like.

"I'm Shikamaru Naru." Stated Shikamaru with his usual lazy tone.

"...I'm Choji Akimichi..." He said quietly. I smiled at his courage and looked over to Sasuke. He didn't really have a specific facial expression, but at least he wasn't frowning.

"Sasuke Uchiha." He stated rather plainly. I sighed and noticed he looked over to me and frowned. I broke eye contact and looked over to Neji.

"I'm Neji Hyuga. Nice to meet you." He said politely. See...was that so hard? When I was about to speak up, I was beaten by Inoichi.

"Hey kids, mind if a few others join in?" He asked. Others? Who? I looked over to him and noticed three other children. The only ones I had yet to meet...funny thing was, they were all future teammates and they looked so out of place together.

"Sure daddy!" Exclaimed Ino as she looked at the new comers.

"Now kids be nice and introduce yourselves." He said with a friendly and encouraging tone. Sasuke who stood beside me groaned very softly and I looked over to him. He noticed and stared back with a frown, I shook my head and tilted my head over to the others. He sighed and introduced himself first, probably to get things done quicker. I went next with a slight bow and then it was Ino, with her cheerful attitude. Shikamaru said his lazy introduction while Choji's was soft and timid. Neji was polite and bowed over to Hinata.

"Good! Now, you guys too!" He said towards the new kids.

"Hey! I'm Kiba Inuzuka and this is Akamaru!" He introduced very friendly like. I smiled and took in his appearance. He was small and young like the rest. All of them looked pretty much the same, only with different outfits. Kiba wore casual clothes. Some shorts and a tee-shirt with some ninja sandals. Shino was still covered in clothing and had his sunglasses on, so I couldn't really see if his face looked any different, but most likely it only looked younger. Hinata was very cute when she was young. She wore a simple kimono and had short hair with her hime-cut styled bangs framing her face. Her pearl white eyes only adding to her pretty look.

"My name is Shino Aburame. It's nice to meet you all." He stated monotonously. We all looked at Hinata, as she was the only one left. She had a blush already appearing on her face, due to all the eyes on her.

"I-I'm Hinata H-Hyuga." She said very quietly. I'm pretty sure everyone had to strain their ears to hear her. When the introductions where done and Inoichi began to ask them if they wanted to play, I took this time to quickly look over to the adults.  
Hiashi, Tsume and her wolf, Hana was with the other woman, and Shibi Aburame. My eyes widened when I noticed the three along with the wolf looking in our direction. I looked away after smiling, not too quickly or else it would become suspicious but instead I looked away slowly.

"Alright! Lets play!" Shouted Kiba. He appeared to be very excited to get to play with kids his age. Inoichi helped us fairly pick the person who would find the others. I found out awhile back that this ninja game was a cross between tag and hide and seek. there was nine of us all together and after a few minutes, the person was decided by drawing the shortest stick Inoichi had picked up. Of course...I would be the one to be picked. I sighed and Ino giggled, I opened my eyes and stared at her with a small frown. There was no way I would be able to sense them, using my senses when Inner was already having a hard time with our chakra so I would have to play fair...and I hated being the finder.

**Normal POV**

"Is that so..." Stated Tsume as the newcomers where filled in with the information they had gained that day.

"Is she aware that your planning on asking her again?" Asked Hiashi. Hiruzen shook his head.

"No. We will talk to her alone later into the day, when the kids are distracted and she's able to be alone for a few minutes." He answered.

"Why not do it now?" Asked Shibi as he looked over to the kids and Inoichi as they drew sticks.

"Because Sakura-chan has yet to leave Ino-chan's side." Stated Shikaku as the others looked over to the kids.

"You saw for yourselves how observant Sakura-san is." Stated Hizashi, referring to when Sakura had looked over to them and her movements up till now.

"Alright kids! Go and hide!" Inoichi exclaimed happily. The kids had all spread out through out the yard. Sakura walked over to the edge and sat down where the stairs where. She sighed and looked up when a shadow covered her.

"Nuh-uh Sakura-chan. No cheating." He said with a grin. Sakura sighed again but closed her eyes and began to count. Inoichi knew from what his daughter told him about their meetings that Sakura was a really bad finder. Ino had giggled every time she had remembered Sakura's poor attempts at finding her. Inoichi chuckled and patted her head, momentarily messing up Sakura's counting. He walked back to the group.

"So Sakura-chan was chosen to find huh?" Shisui commented as he looked at Sakura on the stairs. She was sitting with her face prompted by her hands that had her elbows on her knees.

"Yup. This should be very interesting." Inoichi stated as he turned and looked at the children hiding in various places. Kiba had taken to climbing a tree with Akamaru on his head. Ino was hiding behind the bushes as well as Hinata. Choji had hid under the food table and Shikamaru, Neji, Sasuke and Shino had gone over to the back side of the house, so they weren't very sure where they had gone.

"They all have such different yet similar idea's." Stated Hiruzen as he looked over the scene.

"Indeed." Stated Hizashi as he along with Hiashi had activated their Byakugan.

"The other four boys have taken to hiding themselves very well." Stated Hiashi.

"Shikamaru is on the roof, while Shino is in a hallow log far away near the pond. Sasuke and Neji are hiding in trees high up and very concealed." Informed Hizashi.

"Can you see her chakra?" Asked Choji as he wondered whether she was actually suppressing her chakra. They noticed the Hyuga's widening of their eyes.

"She is, but...I don't know how she could possibly be concentrating on suppressing it when she's been acting fine all day. Surely it must be causing her some strain." Hizashi answered.

"Well, let's see what little Sakura-chan can do." Said Shikaku as they all looked over to Sakura.

She had finally counted all the way to fifty and had opened her eyes. She made no move of getting up, as she sat and looked around the yard.

**"Outer, I think you should just find them naturally because if you find them too quickly then they'll get suspicious of us."** Inner stated worryingly.

'I know. You just focus on our chakra and I'll try to make us look natural.' Sakura thought as she looked around, noticing the adults staring.

'Alright, lets think...I'm playing a game that's a mix between tag and hide and seek.' Sakura thought as she looked down to her clothing, realizing that it wasn't very suitable for this type of game.

"Hasn't she finished counting? Shouldn't she be seeking?" Asked Tsume as they watched her look down at her clothing.

"Give her a minute. She thinking." Stated Shikaku.

"How do you know?" Asked Kakashi as he noticed Sakura standing up.

"She had that look in her eyes when you can tell someone's strategizing...but not anymore. She's figured something out." Shikaku informed. He noticed along with the others how she was going down the stairs calmly and began walking towards them.

"Nub-uh Sakura-chan! We won't tell you anything!" Shisui said with his arms crossed. Sakura raised an eyebrow and shook her head before turning over to Shikaku.

"Ne, Shikaku-sama, do you have some rope I can use?" Sakura asked.

"Sure, I'll have to go get it...but what do you need that for?" He asked, not expecting her to ask for rope, but no one there was expecting that either.

"Wait Shikaku! Here take this kid! Saves you the trouble of looking for some." Tsume said as she extended her hand that held onto a leash. Sakura blinked up to her and tilted her head.

"Thanks, I'm Sakura Haruno and you must be Kiba-san's mother." She said politely and grabbed the leash.

"That's right kid. And these are Hiashi and Shibi." She introduced. Sakura, who had been looking between them nodded and bowed slightly, before looking down at the leash in her hands. Her eyes were filled with mirth that only she found funny. She looked back up again and gave everyone a passing glance as she waved and left.

"Wait! Weren't you going to ask for clues?!" Shisui called out to Sakura. She stopped and looked back to Shisui over her shoulder.

"That would be cheating Shisui-san." She stated as she walked over to the open yard.

**Sakura's POV**

Leaving the group had me relaxing my nerves way more then I thought I'd need too. Maybe they hadn't intended to but just their presence enough was intimidating. I looked down to the leash in my hands. I chuckled as I could already imagine the faces of a few particulars getting caught with a leash.

**"Isn't that a bit mean?"** Asked Inner from inside my head.

'Well I did ask for rope and it's not like I can run with this kimono...well I could but I don't want to risk messing something up from Haruki.' I answered as I adjusted the leash to fit the size I wanted.

**"I guess...and it would be pretty funny seeing Ino-pigs reaction."** Inner laughed as she conveyed to me an image of Ino. I chuckled at the image and shook my head to clear the image away.

'Alright then, who should be our first target?' I asked trying to look around for anyone.

**"Since your the seeker, might as well start with the easiest."** Inner answered. I smiled and turned completely around, walking towards the mothers and Hana.

'Alright then, let's play ninja.' I thought as I made my way towards the food tables with confidence.

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**Alright, second part of the meeting completed! Hope you guys enjoyed! Next update will be on Wednesday, I've been pretty busy with school lately! More and more people are getting suspicious of Sakura, read and find out on the next update what they find or not find out about her secrets. Continue to read and review!**


	22. Chapter 22

**Authors Note:** I don't think I will ever get tired of thinking about how amazing you reviewers are! Thank you so much for your kind words that make me very happy and excited to write more chapters! I'm so surprised from reading the reviews how some of you have liked this story so much. I sincerely thank all of you and even the readers who just enjoy reading my story, thank you!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Unexpected Sleepover**

**Sakura's POV**

Walking towards the tables with food on them, I began to formalize a quick but effective trap. It couldn't be hurtful but it had to serve it's purpose. I stopped a few feet away from the house and looked around. Choji, who was no doubt hiding somewhere near his mother would try to run...they all did. That was the point of the game after all. Choji was a timid kid so when I find him he would probably hesitate for a few seconds before running away. He would also take to running on the hallway instead of jumping off the hallways, most likely thinking I couldn't run in the yard with my sandals.

Deciding that my plan of action was as simple and safe as it could get, I walked over to the stairs and turned right, passing the doors. I took the end of the leash where it tied together to make the collar on a post. The end of the leash was placed in between the shoji doors on the other side of the hallway. I then walked back, heading towards the room. I made sure to look as if I was trying to find him when I walked in, even though I knew he was under the table. After three minutes of searching, I leaned down and moved the tablecloth.

"Ah, I found you Choji-san." I said with childlike surprise. His eyes widened and he backed away from the edge. I kneeled down and reached inside with my right hand, trying to grab him. Choji had backed away as far as he could and then got out by the side. As expected he hesitated but then when he saw me getting up, he ran. Most likely towards Inoichi who was made the safety zone. I jumped to the right towards the mothers who were watching us play. I was purposefully making him have to go left so he could get trapped. He quickly took the chance, not once questioning my actions. He looked behind his shoulder once, to see if I was following, which was a big mistake. He ran right into the leash that was placed perpendicular to his body. Because the side of the leash that was held by the doors was held loosely, he fell forward onto the floor. There was both good and bad things that had occurred. The bad thing was, he had fallen. The good things were that the trap had not broken anything and because Choji wasn't running so fast, the fall wasn't so bad. I walked up to him and bent down to be closer to the shocked boy on the floor. I poked him on the shoulder, snapping him out of his shock.

"Your out Choji-san." I informed the boy who nodded and sat up. I smiled apologetically and stood, making my way towards the tied up leash. Once I had gotten the leash, I walked down to the yard. Passing the adults as calmly as I could, I looked at Shisui who had a surprised expression on his face. I lifted one finger up, signifying the number one.

"I've got one. Seven more to go." I informed cheerfully as I turned and made my way towards the center of the yard. I looked around making sure I looked like a little kid playing normally...not that it normally would be easy for me. I sucked at seeking people out without chakra. I could do it when I concentrated and observed carefully but I couldn't just act like that with just anyone around.

I looked around and chuckled at the hiding spots some of them had chosen, and the others...well I had a good idea for where they would choose. As I looked around, I noticed the big mistakes they made as children. From the rustling of leaves to the whispering they thought wouldn't be heard. Even Shino, without it being his intention, had some visible clues for me to go by. I saw a pretty blue butterfly flutter past me and head towards the pond. Without thinking to much on it, I followed it with my eyes. The butterfly flew towards a log and went inside. I raised an eyebrow in wonder when it did not come out on either side of the log after a few seconds. Deciding that it was probably Shino...or a spider web that was inside, I decided to look at it last, due to its location.

Hinata was my next target. The poor girl squeaked softly and fidgeted every time I went past her bush as I walked around the yard, acting as if I was searching. As I started moving from bush to bush, I was approaching Hinata very quickly and the funny thing was, I didn't even get to her bush and she had already stood from her crouch. I had been momentarily stunned by her silliness. She wasn't supposed to reveal herself...but then again this was Hinata. She was probably overwhelmed and decided to try her luck in outrunning me; and as if having the same train of thought she picked her kimono up and ran. Deciding to copy her actions, I too lifted the bottom of my kimono and ran after her. I chuckled as I heard her loud breathing, but when her small head turned to look at me, her face wasn't timid anymore. She was determined...and I don't think it was for the game. I think she was trying to prove herself to her father. I smiled kindly at the back of the small child in front of me. Hinata was pretty fast as a kid but I obviously wasn't going all out, not with my weights and especially not in front of the clan heads.

"Woohoo! Hinata-chan! You can do it! Sakura-chan, she's beating you!" Shouted Shisui across the yard. We had already crossed half the front of the yard and were very close to Inoichi. I wasn't throwing the game, I'm just letting it happen naturally. If she beats me she beats me, If I catch up, well...she tried really hard. I ran just a bit faster, so it could make Hinata push herself a bit harder. I was about three feet behind her now and I could see her little legs moving faster.

Just when we were ten feet away, the poor girl tripped! I had gasped along with Inner as we saw her being tripped by a stupid rock in the way.

**"Oh my gosh! Catch her!"** Inner commanded in my head. I was glad I was really close to her. I reached out, letting go of my kimono and taking one huge step towards her, and grabbed the back of her kimono. I pulled my hand back, and switched places with her. Pulling Hinata with our strength differences was easy and she had quickly balanced herself when I had let go. And of course, another stupid rock was there in my way. I tripped on it and my legs where tangled with my kimono, making me go unbalanced.

I quickly extended my hands out so I could catch myself from collapsing face first into the ground. But before I could embarrass my self in the presence of powerful ninja, I felt something fluffy but strong push me from the front, and lifted me up into the air for a second before falling back down on whatever it was. The sudden movement produced a small "Oof." to come out of my mouth. My sight was obscured by black and white...and it tickled very much.

I felt very silly in the position I was in. My whole body was off the ground and it slung across the slender yet fluffy body of the only big dog capable of doing so. I heard chuckles and sighed, allowing my limbs to dangle in relaxation from being rigid only seconds ago. I lifted my head and tilted it so I could see his face. I had to admit, Kuromaru looked really cool. Being so up close to him, I now only noticed that he had yet to loose his ear and wear an eye patch.

**"I wonder when he does? But he still looks soo cute!"** Inner exclaimed as she looked at Kuromaru through my eyes.

'That question is something I want to know too, and yes. He is very cute...and very fluffy' I agreed with Inner. Kuromaru turned his head towards mine and I smiled at him.

"Thanks for helping me." I thanked him and watched him nod. He leaned down slightly and I felt my toes touching the ground. I straightened up and turned to look at Hinata who had her hands covering her mouth in shock.

"Sorry Hinata-san but your out." I informed and the girl only widened her eyes. She intertwined her hands and bowed down with a blush.

"I-I'm r-really sorry!" She stated hurriedly. I tilted my head down at her.

"It's okay Hinata-san. It was an accident and neither of us were hurt." I tried to explain to the girl. She looked up shocked and blinked away tears.

"You can wait with Choji-san while I go get the two giggling ones over there." I said as I pointed to the direction Ino and Kiba and Akamaru were hiding at. They all looked in the direction and then back towards me. Hinata nodded and slowly walked over to the others.

"Sakura- chan, are you sure your okay?" Asked the Hokage nicely. I nodded and smiled up to them reassuringly.

"I'm fine. You were very fluffy." I said over to Kuromaru, who tilted his head. Tsume and some other laughed and she bent down and patted his head. Kuromaru was very serious but still allowed her to pat him on the head.

"And you were very light." Kuromaru said. I forced myself to look surprised, so the others wouldn't get suspicious.

"Oh! You can talk? Your a very smart Ninken." I complemented him honestly. He looked surprised as did Tsume who stopped laughing.

"Before I go, will you tell me your name?" I asked him, who nodded at my request.

"Kuromaru." He answered and I couldn't help think his attitude was pretty cool and calm. I nodded and bowed quickly.

"It's very nice to meet you." I said before smiling and turning towards the bushes.

I made my way towards the bush I had heard Ino's giggle come from. She was actually good at hiding, she just had trouble controlling her abrupt giggles...actually most of the time that was how I found her.

Once I was close enough I crouched in front of her and pushed aside the bushes in front of me. She gasped and then giggled.

"I found you Ino-chan." I said with a smile. She grinned widely and ran around the bush, her kimono was already lifted and ready to run in. I stood up calmly and watched her get about two feet away. I grabbed ahold of the leash and threw it at her. The collar part that I had made bigger flew towards her and caught her. I pulled onto the leash and made the collar shrink in size, encircling around her arms. She squealed in surprise and turned over towards me with a pout.

"That's no fair Sakura-chan!" She shouted and tried to wiggle out of the leash. I kept a strong grip onto the rope and walked closer to her.

Just for fun I loosened my grip and extended a finger over to her slowly, signifying that I could have her out with a touch of my finger.

"No!" She exclaimed and wiggled around rather exaggerating. I chuckled and rolled my eyes at her actions before I poked her on the shoulder.

"Your out." I stated as I saw her face turn into one of defeat.

"Fine..." She groaned out. I smiled and took off the leash around her. I watched her walk back towards the others with a pout on her face. Then I proceeded to walk over to the tree where Shikamaru and Choji were laying down earlier. When I had passed the tree on my walk there were very soft whispering and barking heard from it.

Once I went over to the tree, I immediately looked up and sure enough there they where. Kiba was sitting on one of the first branches and Akamaru was on his head. Their reactions were different from the ones I anticipated. Instead of looking surprised and confused as to why I had found them so fast, they looked ready, confident even. Kiba grinned widely at my confusion and opened his hands towards me, throwing a bunch of leaves in my way. The leaves obscured my vision long enough for them to jump down and start running towards the others.

"Hahaha! You can't catch us!" Kiba yelled tauntingly as he ran over to Inoichi and the others. I stopped waving my hands around to get the leaves away and just started running after the laughing boy and his dog. They ran pretty fast, the only reason Kiba hadn't already arrived was probably because he was carrying Akumaru. I ran as fast as I thought a child could run and noticed a small branch that was around the size of my small arms. I picked it up when I passed it and quickly tied the leash around the branch, my speed decreasing because of the kimono I had let go of. Once I had it securely tied I threw it and caught Kiba around the ankles. I pulled lightly and he tripped and fell forward, luckily he had felt the leash and placed his hands in front so his fall wouldn't be so bad.

"Go Akamaru! Go on without me!" Kiba screamed out rather dramatically. Running over to the two I tapped Kiba's head before running over to Akamaru who had started to run away. I had barely managed to catch him before he got too far. I pulled Akamaru closer to me, holding him in my arms.

"Nuh-uh. You both are out." I said with a smile over to Kiba who was still on the ground. His legs were still tied up and had his chin propped in the palm of his hand. He had a sullen pout but his eyes were filled with happiness, most likely from the fun he was having. I looked down at Akamaru who was also sporting a sad face. I patted his head and walked over to Kiba. I helped untangle his legs once my hands were free. Taking the leash with me, I waved bye and made my way towards the back of the house. the other's wouldn't be too hard to find...I don't think so anyway.

It had taken me eight minutes to find Neji. I noticed that all four of the remaining members were really good at hiding. I had noticed Shikamaru up on the roof three minutes before finding Neji. I decided to leave him for later. The only reason I had found Neji up on a high tree was because I had to concentrate really hard. What gave his position away were a few reasons. One, being I had heard branches move and the wind had not blown. Two, was for the fact that he actually made noise when his feet touched the branches he would move to when he thought his position would be seen by me. The last reason was actually very obvious that I was so shocked I hadn't looked for it sooner. Neji had been wearing a light kimono...how he got up the tree with it was a mystery to me. The moment I had approached the tree he was on, I had noticed the stark difference in colors between his clothing and our surroundings.

"Found you Neji-san." I called up to the boy. He looked down and sent me a knowing smile, probably also knowing his clothing had given him away. He nodded and jumped down from the branches until he was down enough to jump to the ground in front of me. His long hair had followed his movements with such grace, that it reminded me of my dances. I had almost accomplished the lightning dance, but I still had to make them all flow out with the same grace as Chouko.

"How many have you found?" He asked me once he was close enough.

"Three...four if you count Akamaru." I answered he nodded and smiled over to me.

"Is one of them Hinata-sama?" He asked. I nodded up to the slightly taller boy.

"Yes. All that's left is Shikamaru-san, Shino-san and Sasuke-san." I informed him as we both looked around.

"Do you mind if I stay and watch?" He asked politely. I raised an eyebrow and tilted my head.

"You can still win by going to Inoichi-sama." I told him, perhaps he didn't know the rules? He shook his head and smiled.

"You and I are wearing kimono's. It would be hard to run in and I don't know if I could beat you there." He answered rather truthfully. Now he was a good thinker. He'd rather not take the chance, when he doesn't know his "opponents" skills. I smiled and nodded, reaching over and tapping him on his shoulder.

"Then your out and yes, you can stay and watch." I said as I began to look around for Sasuke, whom I had yet to locate.

**"Kyaaa! He's six trees over!"** Shouted Inner with hearts in her eyes. How was she able to sense him when she was concentrating on our chakra? I shook my head and walked around. Perhaps she was getting really good at sensing...or perhaps she just had another sense...a Sasuke sensor? I chuckled at the thought of Inner knowing exactly where and what Sasuke was doing from wherever he was.

When I reached the tree Inner had sensed Sasuke at. I looked around and pretended I didn't know he was there. When I deemed it had been enough time, I moved away from the small bush I was searching and looked up. The sight made me want to laugh, but I held it in. It was so funny I just had to turn away just to be able to breathe correctly. I heard footsteps and looked back in front of me. Neji had a curious expression and he raised an eyebrow at me, probably questioning my reaction. I waved him over, trying not to laugh. He complied and came over to my side. He looked up and noticed the source of my reaction; and to my amusement he too looked like he was having a hard time holding back a laugh. I took a peek over to Sasuke, the source of our merriment.

Somehow during the beginning of the game, he had zoned out and fallen asleep. He was sitting on the first branch, leaning his back onto the tree. The reason why I couldn't find him, was because he was facing the other direction. He also had dark clothing and was very small, so he hid pretty well, even if he hadn't been in the position in the first place. I hadn't taken that long, had I? Surely not long enough for him to fall complelty asleep.

"The position is very..." Neji couldn't even finish his sentence without having to hold back a laugh. I chuckled and nodded, understanding full well what he meant. I mean, I could even feel Inner trying very hard not to bust out laughing. I think her crush on Sasuke was holding her back. He was in a very funny position. Actually, I was slightly scared he would fall and break something. He was leaning so far to the right, that if one was to blow air from the other side...he would probably fall.

The thing that made it so funny was because he was somehow conscious of his body, even in deep sleep. He had very good sense's. Neji and I wanted to laugh every time he tipped sideways and pulled himself back up just before he got too far to the right. It was very amusing to watch him jolt in such an angle. Everytime he would let his body relax and it began to slide I would have to tilt my head just to follow his body.

"Shouldn't you wake him?" Asked Neji as he walked closer to the tree.

"I'm trying to think of a good way...Ne, do you think it would break something to fall that distance?" I asked as I looked between the branch and the ground. He raised an eyebrow, confused by my question.

"Not really...but...asleep?...Perhaps not, if his reflexes are good." He answered somehow getting the idea I was thinking about.

**"No! Don't hurt Sasuke-kun!"** Inner shouted.

'Didn't you hear what Neji said?' I said to Inner as she crossed her arms.

**"Yeah...but..."** Inner said, not really being able to come up with an excuse.

'It's shouldn't hurt that much...besides, my plan isn't finished yet.' I said as I smiled secretly. I grabbed the leash in my hand and made the collar go around Sasuke's ankle. I placed it slowly, making sure he wouldn't wake up.

'Who said Naruto could be the only prankster.' I thought in my head with a smirk.

**"Oh my god! Not you too!"** Inner shouted as she face palmed herself. I ignored her and continued to finish up. When I finished with his ankle, I looked over to Neji who was rather curious to my idea of waking Sasuke up.

"Do you want to watch this...it'll be funny." I said with a quiet laugh. He chuckled and nodded.

"We need to get up that branch." I informed as I pointed to the branch above Sasuke's. He nodded and took a hold of the branch and pulled himself up the first branch, placing his feet on the trunk for support.

He was soon on the first branch beside Sasuke's and was reaching down to help me up.

"Take my hand and I'll help you get up." He said nicely. I smiled and nodded thankfully up to him. I reached for his hand and immediately had an image transfer over to me.

Two figures sat outside on a hallway, but the only thing I could see was their backs. One figure bigger but feminine unlike the much smaller one of a young boy. It was early in the morning and the sun was shining down upon them warmly. The woman turned her head to the right and looked down to the boy who was drinking tea. She said something but I had yet to be able to hear memories, and I couldn't read lips very well.

The boy looked up and I could see his lips moving. The only words I could make out were, "Okay mommy."

The woman which was most likely Misaki, reached over and placed her slender hand on Neji's head. She leaned over and placed a gentle kiss upon his forehead. The image then began to blur and darken as he pulled me up and let go. I blinked and looked at Neji. He must have had a really good bond with his mother. He began to pull himself up onto the second branch. When he reached over for me again, the image I received when we touched hands was different.

This one was much more difficult to take in. The beautiful woman that I have only seen twice was laying on a very white bed. Everything around her was white besides some flowers. She looked tired and sad, it was very hard for me to see these kinds of memories. I never wanted to intrude on memories like these, but I had yet to be able to learn much of this ability.

In the memory I could see Neji and Hizashi stand beside her bed. Poor Neji, he had tears streaming down his face and his father...well he wasn't crying but he looked really sad. I watched as Neji hurriedly spoke to his mother and she spoke back. They embraced and kissed and then he walked out the room...why? Maybe to give them some privacy. Neji stepped out and closed the door leaving a bit open to see. I saw Hizashi and Misaki talking with a rather serious mood, but then the room overflowed with grief and sadness. I hadn't realized I could feel emotions in memories, this being the first time and my body began to shiver. The next moment was fading quickly, but I still got enough time to see Hizashi fall to his knees and places his wifes hand, that was in his on his forehead. Tears were finally cascading down his face and when the image was gone I had to blink my eyes so I wouldn't end up crying or something. That image had just turned my mischievous mood into a sad one.

'Thanks again Inner, for taking care of our chakra. I think anyone would have felt our change if you hadn't' I said to Inner who was actually crying.

**"...Sniff...no problem...sniff."** she said in between sniffles.

"Sakura-san? What next?" Neji asked, thankfully he was looking down at Sasuke. I cleared my throat and shook my head. I looked down at Sasuke.

"Now we wake him." I said as I positioned the leash in my hands securely by tying it into a loop. I was making sure it wouldn't slide through my hands so easily. I turned my head over to Neji who sat beside me on the branch.

"When your so close, you might want to cover your ears." I informed and saw him nod and cover his ears with his hands. I took a quick deep breath and placed my fingers on my mouth like always. Waiting for him to lean as far to the right I blew out the held in air and produced a quick loud whistle. We watched in amusement as Sasuke jerked awake roughly and couldn't hold himself on the branch because of how far he leaned. He screamed and flailed his arms, trying to balance himself. He was falling off and that's when I pulled on the leash and watched with mirth as he swung left to right upside down by his ankle. He looked even funnier dangling on a leash. Neji and I couldn't hold back our laughs, so we didn't.

Sasuke soon found the source of the sound and frowned up at us. It was hard to tell if he was red on the face due to his embarrassment or his position. The way he tried to lift his head up to look at us but then put it back down because of the weight was funny. He cleared his throat and crossed his arms.

"Are you going to let me down?" He asked with a grumpy mood. I chuckled one last time and nodded. Neji had already jumped to the first branch.

"Neji-san you can go down and make sure Sasuke-san lands safely. I can get down by myself." I informed. He nodded and then jumped down to the ground next to Sasuke. I began to slowly lower Sasuke down to the ground, but it was quite hard with him wiggling. He kept reaching down to the ground with his hands.

When Sasuke was one foot above Neji, one small branch that was helping the leash stay on the bigger branch broke. I couldn't believe the situation. He was almost there when the branch snapped with the pressure and Sasuke dropped. The funniest thing occurred, it even stopped Inner's scared scream. Silly Neji had been standing under Sasuke and had pretty much acted as a cushion for his fall. The whole thing happened quick. Neji had heard the snap and looked up when he was suddenly pushed onto the ground. Sasuke had yelled and his tummy crashed into Neji's outstretched arms. His arms couldn't hold up all of Sasuke's weight and so, Sasuke fell with his tummy over Neji's arms and tummy perpendicularly. The leg that was still tied by the ankle was still in the air, looking very weird and funny at the same time.

I couldn't help the laugh that came out from me. Their shocked faces were just so cute and funny. Their shock was soon replaced with a blush across the face, that only made me laugh even more.

I was so stupid. I should have laughed when I was safely on the ground; but I hadn't thought I would laugh that strongly. My uncontrollable laughter had cause me to wobble on the branch. I gasped as I felt my body falling backwards. As I descended to the ground, head first, I felt my ankle get caught and jerked me to a stop. It took me awhile to realize that it had been the loop I had made to the leash. I must have looked hilarious, because I heard Neji's laughter ring throughout the area. I was spinning around really slowly but when I had turned over to them, I noticed why I could only hear Neji's laughter. When I had fallen and caught my ankle on my side of the leash. The other side which was still tied to Sasuke's ankle had pulled him off the ground and up into the air again. Now the both us were hanging upside down looking rather funny. Sasuke's limbs were still dangling while I had to hold the bottom of my kimono.

I soon heard different laughter, chuckles, and giggles coming from behind us. I waited till the leash that was still spinning me slowly, to allow me to see the source of laughter. I knew who they belonged to because Inner and Neji had stopped a while ago. When I was able to see behind me, I noticed that not only all the kids but all the adults came too. I was starting to get dizzy with all the spinning.

"You leave our sights for fifteen minutes and you get yourself in so much trouble." Said Inoichi as he approached me with Ino by his side. She giggled at me and I looked up...or down?

"Sakura-chan! Hehehe...why would you hang yourself like that?" She asked with childish mirth. I rolled my eyes at her.

"Well Ino-chan, I just wanted to see everything from a new angle and Sasuke-san just wanted to try..." I explained rather seriously as I spun around to face a frowning Sasuke and a chuckling Neji.

"That's not true! This is all your fault!" Sasuke exclaimed as he pointed a finger at me accusingly. I shook my head at his comment. Of course it's not true...it was a joke.

"Dear, help poor Sakura-chan down." Said Naomi. I heard footsteps and felt a hand placed on my back and knees, gently lifting me up. Another pair of hands were on my ankle, setting me loose. When my head was right side up again, I noticed the other person was Shikaku. I also saw Itachi and Shisui helping Sasuke down. A chuckle from Shikaku made me look back up to him, noticing he had finished untying me. I thanked them for their help when I was placed on the ground. The mothers that I knew came up to me and fixed my clothes and hair.

"So little Sakura-chan, I think we should call this game over since the last two are already here." He said looking over to Shino and Shikamaru who stayed quiet but with looked on with amusement. I nodded up to him.

"Alright, I was going to get them next anyway." I explained as I thanked the mothers around me.

"Did you already know where they were hiding?" Asked Hiashi. I nodded up to him.

"I had noticed their hiding spots a while back, but due to their location I had decided to leave them for last." I explained.

"Where did they hide?" Asked the Hokage as if they didn't know.

"I saw Shikamaru-san up in the roof because I saw his ponytail sticking up." I said smiling at Shikamaru. He nodded, agreeing with my knowledge of his whereabouts. I then looked over to Shino, who still had the little butterfly on his shoulder. I walked up to him and lifted my finger up to the butterfly. To my delight the cute butterfly flew to my finger. I brought it closer to me so I could take in its detail.

"I found out Shino-san was in the log near the pond because I saw this butterfly fly in and not come out." I said and then let the butterfly flutter towards Shino. To my surprise it didn't go to him and flew up to land on the side of my head.

"Good Job Sakura-chan!" Shisui exclaimed as he patted my head.

"Shisui!" Mikoto exclaimed, most likely because he messed up my hair. The butterfly, surprised had fluttered down to my shoulder.

"Oh! My bad..." He said and moved his hand away. I looked up to him and retrieved the leash he was handing me.

"Thanks Shisui-san." I said and walked over to Tsume who stood off to the side with a grinning Kiba.

"Thanks for the leash." I said as I handed the leash over to her. She grinned down at me and patted my head much softer than Shisui.

"No problem kid! Hey kid, I've meaning to ask you...is that your natural hair color?" She asked rather seriously for a random question. She leaned in with her hand on her chin as she looked at my hair. Was she being serious? I blinked up to the woman and chuckled. Yes, she was. I suppose even adults could be curious about my hair...but just didn't want to ask.

"It is." I answered and she hummed and looked a bit skeptical. I couldn't blame her...I mean who does have pink hair?...Well I guess I do, but then there were other wierd hair colors and yet pink seemed to be the most eye catching. Even Hinata's blue hair albeit a bit black but still...I guess since mine is just such a bright color, it was deemed weirder.

"Anyways...why don't we head back?" Suggested Choza. We all looked over to him and nodded. All the adult's started to head back to their spots prior to moving to the back, I was beginning to wonder if the men ever got tired. All of us kids sat under the tree Shikamaru and Choji were under first.

"You've gotten better at finding people Sakura-chan!" Ino said as she sat beside me. Everyone sat in a circle like formation. Shikamaru and Choji were closest to the tree trunk, Shikamaru was actually leaning on it. To the left of them sat Neji and Hinata, who fidgeted in place. Shino and Kiba were next but since they didn't really know each other well they had a bit of space between themselves. Next was a grumpy Sasuke who was sitting beside Ino who extremely happy. I was sitting beside her to her right while being on Shikamaru's left.

"Thank's Ino-chan." I said as I looked at the butterfly that had been on my shoulder flutter away to a flower nearby. I then looked over to Akamaru who barked.

"That's right Akamaru! Ne Sakura, how did you get like that when we found you?" Kiba asked, apparently also not minding the honorifics. His comment made all the others turn to me. Neji looked on with a knowing smile while Sasuke sent me a glare. For Sasuke's sake I kept it short.

"Uhm, my trap kind of back fired on me..." I explained hopefully he would just let the topic go. Thankfully he couldn't say anything because of a high pitched cry heard up in the air. It caught everyone's attention and Ino smiled widely. Sora flew in wide circles probably looking for me. Madoka or Kioshi must have told Sora that I was with Inoichi; and since we were under the tree, he could only see Inoichi.

"Sora!" She yelled getting up and running over to the yard so Sora could see her clearly. She was very happy and the other kids who have held the bird did too. The ones who hadn't, only looked on with wonder. I smiled and shook my head while getting up to walk over to Ino. She smiled at me and grabbed my arm.

"You know I can't, so whistle so Sora can come down!" She said excitedly. I nodded and looked up, taking a deep breath and whistling for it's attention. Sora's head turned towards us, turned direction and flew towards us. His big wings helped him arrive even faster and I could see a note attached to his leg. Extending out my arm, he landed with his usual unintended flourish. He really couldn't help the fact that he was so pretty and big for a hawk. I always found it amusing and felt proud that people always displayed such obvious amazement towards Sora. Like now, Sasuke and Neji had come over calmly having already been with Sora. The others however haven't and although Shikamaru and Choji had seen the bird before when we first met, this would be the first time they had seen it land and be so close to Sora.

"Wow! Sakura, is that your bird?!" Asked an excited Kiba. I smiled and nodded over to him as Sora rubbed his head against mine. I then passed him over to Ino, who was always eager to hold him. I took the note on his leg before passing it over to her.

"His name's Sora!" Informed Ino as she pet his head. I quickly read the note that was from Madoka. All it said was that the letters from Haruki had arrived and were in my room for when I got back.

"Cool! Sora, come over to me!" Kiba exclaimed as he looked at Sora with excitement.

"No, I'm holding him!" Ino stated and Sora only looked between the two bickering kids and then over to me. I chuckled and shrugged my shoulders. He could pick if he wanted too. Sora then flew away from a shocked Ino but not towards a smug Kiba either. Instead he went over to Neji's shoulder. Seems like Sora had liked Neji. Neji himself was surprised but then smiled happily and started petting him on the head.

"Aww!" Ino whined and looked over to me. I just shrugged trying not to be the target of her ultimate weapon. Kiba pouted but continued to stare at the bird.

"Fine...after Neji!" He said and I looked in amusement as Sora flapped his wings and moved over to Sasuke's arm. Sasuke looked happy and then smugly over to Kiba who frowned. I think Sora was teasing the poor boy.

"Sora, go over to Kiba-san." I said and Kiba looked all hopeful he even started jumping a little. Sora left Sasuke after a few seconds and landed on a shocked but happy Kiba.

"He's so cool!" Kiba said as he looked at Sora and patted his soft feathers.

"He's really smart." Shikamaru stated.

"I know right!" Ino stated.

After Kiba had his turn holding Sora, he flew over towards Shikamaru. Even with his inactive personality his eyes held interest in the bird in his arm. Choji was next and I could tell he liked sora's soft feathers. When Hinata's turn came around, the poor girl looked like she wanted to hold him but was scared too. Sora, whether he knew of her inner turmoil or not flew over to her. Hinata squealed when he landed gently on her shoulder.

"Come on Hinata! Pet him! He's so soft!" Kiba encouraged. Hinata took her right hand and started to timidly pet him. Her face turned from uncertainty to happiness. Inner and I would have to help her control her shy personality.

Shino was last and he seemed ready to hold Sora. Before he had even left Hinata's shoulder, Shino had walked over to them and extended his arm. I wanted to chuckle at his cute, barely hidden desire to hold Sora. Kids were very easy to read what they were thinking if one knew what to look for. After everyone had a turn holding Sora, we just talked.

"So what should we do now? We have all day and tomorrow." Shikamaru stated. My eyes widened and I looked over to him confused.

"Today I understand but why tomorrow?" I asked him and only got a raised eyebrow in return. His eyes then travelled to Ino and a knowing look passed his features.

"Ah...well, you guys are sleeping over..." He said and spoke as if he wanted to avoid the oncoming drama. I frowned, sleeping over? Here? Tonight? I turned around not even looking at Ino and walked over to the men and Tsume. I cleared my throat when I was behind Inoichi and Shikaku.

"Excuse me." I spoke up gaining their attention. I felt Ino walk up beside me with the others not too far.

"Oh! What's wrong Sakura-chan? Did your mother or father want something?" He asked referring to Sora. I shook my head no.

"No, Shikamaru-san just said something I wanted to clarify." I said.

"What is it?" Asked Shikaku, interested in what his son had said.

"Was there supposed to be a sleepover here?" I asked wanting to know. They raised and eyebrow and looked at each other before looking back down at me.

"Yes...didn't Ino tell you Sakura-chan?" Asked Inoichi as he looked between us. I looked over to Ino who looked the other way and scratched her cheek.

"Oops...I guess I forgot to tell you..." Ino said. Of course I didn't believe her.

"Hmm." I hummed skeptically at Ino's poor excuse. I looked back up.

"I didn't know...I didn't bring anything." I said looking over to Ino again. She somehow got an idea because she suddenly looked over to me.

"You can send a note to your mom!" She said as she looked at Sora on my shoulder. I guess she was right but...did I want to stay? Were they going to stay? I thought as looked up to the people around me.

"Good idea Ino! Here Sakura-chan!" said Choza as he held out some paper and a paint brush. I tried to smile as I grabbed them. I looked at the items in my hand and sighed as I turned over to Ino. Knowing what I wanted, she turned around and allowed me to use her back as something to bear down on.

"Make sure to tell her you'll be going home later on tomorrow!" Ino said as I had started writing.

"Why? And please stop wiggling." I said as I struggled to write with Sora on my shoulder and Ino wiggling.

"So we can play together more!" She said as if it was the most obvious fact. I rolled my eyes at her reason, only to widen them at seeing a small drop of ink drop right in her hair. I winced out loud, gaining their attention. Shikamaru who was closest shook his head with a chuckle.

"What's wrong?" She asked and I looked at her.

"Nothing...I just...didn't like how a letter looked..." I said and she sighed.

"Stop being OCD and finish so your mom can reply." She said and I quickly finished writing the letter while keeping my eyes on the small drop in her hair. I handed the brush back to Choza who took it with a chuckle.

"Are you done?" Ino asked.

"Almost. I'm reading over it...wait don't move..." I instructed.

"Why?" She asked but complied.

"Uhm...there's...a bug in your hair..." I said and watched her face get all shocked.

"Eek! Get it out!" She said and started to wiggle. If she kept that up, she was going to spread the ink.

"Don't move or it'll go deeper into your hair." I informed.

"Eek! It's in my hair?!" She shrieked but stayed still. my right hand reached for the drop and I started to try and clean the spot. When I had thought it looked the least noticable I turned to Shikamaru, I knew he would give an honest opinion. I raised and eyebrow as I tilted my head towards Ino's hair. He looked at it and then nodded, I sighed and smiled back to Ino. I was going to pat her back but pulled my hand back remembering I had rubbed off the ink with it and it would surely smudge if it wasn't dry.

"I got it." I said settling to just tell her. She sighed and turned around with a smile.

"Thanks! Are you done?" She asked and I nodded and began to roll up the paper and tie it to Sora's leg.

"Take it to mother." I said and he nodded and rubbed my head before flying off.

"You have a very well trained hawk Sakura-san." Stated Tsume. I smiled up to her.

"My grandfather taught him most of the things he knows." I said, which was true.

"Where is your grandfather from?" Asked Kakashi as he looked down at me.

"From the Land of Water." I answered him. He nodded and looked at me.

"That's why your bird looked different." He stated and I nodded.

"Yes, he's actually a bit bigger than most hawks." I said as I could still see Sora flying in the sky.

"I also noticed that. Isn't he heavy?" Said the Hokage.

"He's not heavy at all once you get used to him!" Ino explained. The others smiled at Ino's childish excitement.

"Ne little Sakura-chan, how about I show you the rules of the game while we wait for Sora to return?" Shikaku asked and I nodded up to him. Shikamaru's interest was gained at his father's mention of "game".

"What are you talking about?" He asked me. I smiled at his open curiosity.

"Well earlier your father had asked if I wanted to play Shogi, but I don't know how to. I only know how to play Go, so your father suggested to teach me." I told him and I could see his laziness replaced by cheerfulness.

"Really? You like to play...Can I go too?" He asked, it was really hard to believe this was the same kid as a few minutes ago, if you just mention the names of the games he will completely change. But then again, he was only three.

"I don't see why not..." I said and we both looked up to Shikaku who was seemingly amused. By what? I had no idea.

"It's fine by me." He stated.

"Then is it alright if we all go?" Asked the Hokage, who also seemed to be interested.

"Sure, whoever wants to go can go." Shikaku stated in a very laid back tone. He turned and started to walk off towards the house. I took a deep breath.

"Lets go." Said Shikamaru as he began to follow his father and some of the others.

I released my breath and took ahold of Ino's wrist pulling her along with me. I had a feeling that if she wasn't by my side, something would happen and having her near me calmed my nerves down. Perhaps it was her similar personality to Inner, who always knew how to calm me down.

**"Don't worry, I'll always be here to help."** Inner said with sincerity that made me smile, confidence and relief flooding my whole body with only a few of her words.

* * *

**This chapter was pretty long! To answer a question from a reviewer, I am planning on continuing all the way into their genin and Shippunden years. Some things will follow the original plot while others will change to go with my plot, so don't expect the exact same things to happen. Oh, I also have good news! Snow has caused schools to go on break where I'm at and winter break is also coming up next week, so I'll be going back to my every other day schedule! Hope you guys enjoyed and conitinue to read and review!**


	23. Chapter 23

**Authors Note:** Hey guy's happy Valentine's day for those of you who celebrate it or just know of it! This chapter's seems pretty short to me since it's mostly the confrontation between the clan heads and Sakura. Anyways, hopefully you still enjoy and review!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Truth's Told**

**Sakura's POV**

All the clan heads and the children followed Shikaku to his Go room. It was pretty spacious and had no problem fitting all of us inside.

"Come over here Sakura-chan" Shikaku said as he walked over to the other side of a table that held the board. I complied and sat on the empty side. Shikamaru took to sitting closer to us while the others took their own seats wherever they wanted and got comfortable.

For the next hour I spent my time paying close attention to what Shikaku was teaching me. It's not everyday some civilian child gets to be taught by a clan head. Shikaku was a very good teacher, even with his lazy personality. I noticed that he wasn't so lazy when it involved something he enjoyed.

I understood all the things he taught me and Inner made sure we would remember the information for later use. I had the distinct feeling that although I was being watched just as much as all the other kids, now it was solely on me. Where they suspicious? Had I slipped and gave them something to be suspicious of?

I cleared my mind of such thoughts and concentrated on the information that was being given to me. Shikaku taught me about the pieces and their placement and movements, as well as the etiquette and he surprised me by giving me some pointers and some simple strategies.

"So little Sakura-chan, how do you feel about playing a game with me?" He asked rather casually. I smiled and leaned slightly back on my cushion. I nodded as I popped some of my bones to help them relax for the soon to be long game.

"It would surely help me get a solid idea of how to play." I said and he nodded while also scooting back. We both bowed and he then proceeded to empty the pieces on the board. I reached over and started to set my pieces on my side of the board. I placed them according to the image I was getting from Inner. Once I finished I looked up and saw that Shikaku was already done. The game began when he moved his first piece. I took in a deep breath and reached for my first piece. It wouldn't be hard to act naturally this time, because this would be my first shogi game and I had no doubt I would be losing.

**~An Hour Later~**

I was actually very proud of myself. It was one hour into the game and the more I looked at the board, the more I knew I was cornered. I also knew he was holding back, because there was no way I had lasted and hour with him playing at his best. Inner had been giving me her opinions and ideas which helped greatly, but I knew we still had a long way to go. At some point I had began to try to incorporate some strategies from Go, but he would always make them useless. I came to realize that I needed to create new strategies for shogi. I had used all the pointers and strategies he had given to me, and even added some twist to them, but they were always stopped.

It was my turn currently and I had to finally stop and give up. I sighed and looked up with a defeated smile. I had done the best I could and I was proud of myself. I had managed to get some of his pieces but it wasn't something that had given me any advantages. I knew, that he knew that I would not be able to win.

"I think I'll lose with whatever move I use." I stated looking back down to the board. Shikaku was really good at strategies and I held high respect for him. He knew how to read his opponents and was always steps ahead of them.

"You did really good Sakura-chan." He said and I smiled up to him.

"Only because you taught me well." I said with a small bow towards the man. He waved it off with his hand and went back to his lazy mannerisms.

"You'll only continue to get better as time goes by." He stated. I wished that was true not only in the game but outside of it aswell. We heard Sora outside and I looked up to him.

"You kids can go." He said looking at me and then the others. I chuckled as I saw the look on some of their faces. They looked tired but fought it off to see through the whole game. Except for Shikamaru who was completely into the game.

"Finally!" Ino said as she got off the floor and walked over to me.

"Lets go see what your mom said!" She said and I nodded up to her. I stood and noticed the other kids also getting up.

"Little Sakura-chan." Shikaku said gaining my attention before I walked out. I turned to him and tilted my head in question.

"We should play again sometime." He stated and my eyes widened for a split second before I smiled at him.

"Okay." I said and bowed slightly before exiting the room.

Shikamaru caught up to me as we made our way over to Sora.

"That was a good game for your first time. How did you come up with some of those strategies?" He asked curiously.

"I just used some from Go that I knew, but your father was still too good." I answered and he nodded.

"Dad actually looked surprised throughout the game...Do you think we could play a game sometime?" He asked expectantly and I smiled at him and nodded.

"Sure, whenever you want." I said and watched him smile and look to the front when Ino yelled out happily. She ran up to me with the note in her hands.

"She said you could stay and sent over some things you would need." Ino exclaimed excitedly as she handed me the note. I was given my pink bag by Choji.

"Ino-chan do you think I could leave this with your mom?" I asked referring to my bag. She nodded and took it from me.

"Yeah, she brought some of my stuff over too!" She said and we made our way to her mother. The others decided to wait for us to come back.

**Normal POV**

"She did very well for her first time." Stated Hiruzen as he looked over to Shikaku.

"She actually did better than I had expected, better than Shikamaru's first time. I'm sure the only reason she hadn't done even better was probably because she had never played before. If it would have been Go, she might have had a chance at winning." Shikaku stated as he cleaned up the pieces.

"That good eh? I thought it was a joke when you told me about Fugaku; and although I'm not so big on games, I could even tell the kid was good." said Tsume as she sat near Kuromaru.

"Not only that, but Sakura-san had very...interesting idea's during their game of ninja." Said Hizashi.

"That's right. Hokage-sama, when should we speak to her?" Asked Inoichi. Hiruzen closed his eyes in thought and then opened them when he had decided.

"After dinner." Hiruzen spoke and proceeded to stand.

"Let's go see what her mother decided." Hiruzen said and walked out of the room with the others close behind.

When they returned to the outer hallways they noticed Ino and Sakura going towards the mothers and handing a pink bag over to Naomi.

"I think she was allowed to stay." Choza commented as he noticed Naomi's smile along with Ino's. The other clan members also agreed and watched as Ino grabbing Sakura's wrist and pulled her along towards the others. Ino has spoken and soon they were all walking towards the house.

"Dear, it's time for dinner." Naomi announced as she approached the group.

"Alright, we're coming." Inoichi said and followed Naomi to the dinning room they would be using.

**Sakura's POV**

I looked around the hallways as Ino lead us to the dinning room. She must have known the layout to Shikamaru's house really good. We stopped in front of two shoji doors. Ino slid them open on both sides and stepped through. A long rectangular table was in front of me. It was decorated with some simple flowers and had food and utensils already set.

"Sakura-chan sit here!" Ino stated as she pulled me to the very end of the table on the left. Ino had grabbed a cushion from my left and moved it to be beside me. We were small enough to fit comfortably on the end together. Sasuke along with Itachi and Shisui sat to Ino's left in that order, much to her happiness. Shikamaru was to my right and Choji was beside him. Kiba was next and the other three sat beside their parents that had come in, further down the table.

"You're going to love the food! Choji's mom always makes the best food! But your mom's the best baker!" She said excitedly. I smiled at her and looked around as everyone began to fill the table.

**"I have a really bad feeling..."** Inner stated and I couldn't help but to believe her.

'Did you notice anything?' I asked as I saw the mothers add more food to the table.

**"Not really...just stay with Ino-pig..."** She said as I felt her concentrate even more on our chakra. I had a similar idea since the day started. The best thing I could do was stick close to Ino. I looked around and couldn't find anything wrong or suspicious but I was going to heed Inner's foreboding feelings and stay in alert.

Dinner went by fast, it was fun but I just couldn't relax. Inner's and my anxiety were growing and I still couldn't find anything off. Throughout the dinner I talked to all the kids and even some adults from time to time. They were simple conversations and easy to answer but I was always cautious of what I said.

Desert came next and everyone was excited. The pastries that were in the three scrolls Madoka had sent over were practically devoured. She had sent many different types and from what I heard and seen going around the table, it was most of their favorites. Many asked me to thank Madoka when I returned and I assured them I would. Everything was going really good and we were having fun, until I felt that feeling come back.

**"Outer!"** Inner said worriedly. I nodded slowly.

'I know. I couldn't forget such a feeling. Someone has casted a genjutsu and since Shisui is here and is one of the best, I'd say it was him. Though there were plenty of people in the room who could have easily created it.' I thought as I tried to act as normal as I could. It was amazing how genjustu's worked, I was talking to Ino as if I normally would. Nothing besides the feeling was different.

My thoughts were halted when I sensed a presence behind me. I looked up and noticed the Hokage standing there with the other adults behind him. How did I not sense them? Nevermind...the genjutsu must have clouded the other chakra signatures in the room.

"Sakura-chan, would you mind accompanying us for a second?" He asked but I could tell, there wouldn't be a way for me to say no. I looked at Ino uncertainly.

"It's okay! But come back quickly!" She said just as if she was the real one. I knew for sure she wasn't the real Ino. The real one would want to tag along. Also, they must have placed a genjutsu on all the others so it would seem I was still present...They were serious about whatever they had to say.

I looked back up to him and tried to make my face as calm as I could.

"Okay." I said and stood up. I looked down at Ino and told her I would be back quickly, just like I would act if everything was normal. When I looked back up, I faintly caught the Hokage looking behind me. probably towards Itachi and Shisui because soon I heard footsteps get closer behind me. The situation turned even more serious than it had to when the Hokage placed a hand on my back and led me out. All the other adults practically encircled us, as we walked in the center. I felt Inner start to panic inside and she was starting to make me nervous as well.

'Calm down Inner. We can do this together.' I encouraged not really sounding as calm as I wanted. It helped calm her down enough for her to concentrate better.

"Is something wrong Sakura-chan?" He asked and I looked up to him. Noticing that everyone else was serious and stayed quiet.

"Everything's fine." I answered and for a split second I saw him frown. I felt as if I had answered incorrectly but if I had said something was wrong, he would have questioned me. And no doubt about it, he would find out I could sense the genjutsu. I looked back down and saw through the legs of the adults, I could see the outside. It was dark, not enough for me not to see, but enough to make me feel more nervous about the situation.

What could they possibly know? Or yet, what didn't they know? I stopped when Shikaku and Inoichi who were in front stopped. They opened the shoji doors on each side and I saw the Hokage walk inside.

"Sit down Sakura-chan." He said gesturing to the cushion in front of me, that would have my back facing the doors. I could do nothing but comply or it would seem suspicious. When everyone took their own seats, I noticed that they didn't wear their happy expressions. No, this was a serious conversation and I knew I wouldn't be able to lie very well.

"Sakura-chan do you have any idea why we're here?" He asked. Okay, maybe he was starting off the conversation with a light question. He would probably branch out until he got into the real topic. I shook my head slowly and tried to concentrate more on all the etiquette lessons from Madoka on meetings, instead of the atmosphere.

"No Hokage-sama." I answered.

"We just want to ask you some questions, nothing to make you worry about." He explained, and I wanted to say yeah right, I'm already nervous and you've only asked me a simple question. I settled for nodding and gesturing to him that I understood.

"I heard from Fugaku, his son and Shisui that you do not wish to enter the academy early? Can you tell me why?" He asked nicely. My eyes widened and I couldn't help but to look at the ones named. They didn't look at me but I knew they could feel my gaze.

Was this whole thing really about me not wanting to go to the academy early?

"I don't think I would make the requirements for certain areas." I answered him with the same excuse I had told the others.

"Nonsense. You would certainly pass. There must be some other reason since the academy was made for you to learn." He said and I bit the inside of my cheek nervously.

'What should I say now? If I tell them the truth...it could have different results, possibly good and bad.' I thought nervously.

**"I don't know...I'm not sure what to do in this situation."** Inner honestly answered with worry.

"Is there a reason why you hesitate?" Asked Hiashi, one of the only ones to come out and say what he thinks. I stayed quiet and just looked at the man.

"Sakura-chan you have no reason to think you can't make the requirements." Inoichi stated quietly.

"He's right Sakura-chan. Your pretty smart as it is." Choza backed up his comment. I could only look to them as they spoke.

"We can come back to that later. For now, I would like to ask something else. Sakura-chan, when did you start wanting to be a ninja and why?" Hiruzen asked. Of course he knew I was nervous and changed the question. He was patient and was named the god of shinobi after all.

"When I was two...and because my father did it." I answered with my cover story. He nodded with a smile.

"And your three right now correct?" He asked.

"About to be four in a month and three weeks." I informed and watched him nod his head again. I really didn't want to be here. He was making it hard not to answer his questions.

"If that's so then why don't you want to enter the academy?" Asked Kakashi. I looked at him and hesitated slightly before answering.

"The same reason why the other clan kids don't. I'm not ready." I lied, trying to make a connection to their kids.

"Some of our kids did not show the same talents as you in such an age." Hiashi stated and I couldn't help but feel sad for Hinata. I suddenly had an idea.

"But your daughter is my age isn't she?" I asked him wanting to get some good information out of this.

"She is, but months younger. Her birthday is in December." He informed. That piece of information was good. It made me feel a bit more confident. That age gap gave me enough time to think about what to do about her kidnapping that lead to many avoidable situations.

"You seem to be avoiding that one question kid." Tsume stated as everyone looked at me. I wanted to run and hide but knew it was impossible to lie for much longer. I looked down to my hands on my lap.

'What should I do?' I thought, knowing Inner did not know the answer.

"It's okay to say why Sakura-chan. No one will interrupt you." The Hokage said as he looked over to Hiashi. I took in a deep shaky breath while closing my eyes.

'I think I'm going to tell the truth.' I thought waiting for any objections from Inner. I got none and was shown an image instead. The image was that of a smiling Naruto. I remembered that day, it had been the first time I had seen him so happy and it had also been the day he had given me his trust.

I opened my eyes and stared at the Hokage dead on with resolve. I was being stupid. I knew before hand that I would be in many situations such as these, but I wouldn't give in. This was just as much for me as it was for Naruto.

"A friend." I said, catching their attention if they hadn't been observing me before.

"Are you saying that your not entering the academy because of a friend?" Asked Shibi as he seemed a bit incredulous. I looked at him with the resolve I felt and knew they could feel it too.

"That's right." I answered honestly.

"Sakura-chan...that reason's a bit..." Inoichi couldn't even finish his sentence but he didn't have to. I knew they thought my reason for not entering was weak.

"Sakura-chan you know that such a reason shouldn't keep your skills back." Shikaku stated. I shook my head and looked at him.

"I know, but I'm keeping my promise...I'm his first friend and-" My sentence was cut off by Hiashi who turned toward me.

"You can't be serious. Don't waste your talent for a friend that could very well leave you." He stated rather harshly. I frowned at his words. He could be very mean to a child, but I wasn't going to let him push his views onto me like Hinata. Before I could say anything, I was beat by the Hokage who had stayed rather quiet since I revealed my reason.

"Hiashi don't push your views onto her. Let her speak. Sakura-chan you were talking about your friend?" He asked gently. I smiled and decided that he should know the truth...He would understand...right?

"He's very nice and has big dreams that I believe will come true. I promised him that I would enter the academy with him...and beside, Ino-chan has already stated many times that we would be going together." I said looking at Inoichi and then towards the Hokage.

"So your friend wants to enter the Academy with you...What's his name?" Asked Hizashi nicely. This was it. The moment of truth, whether they accept me or shun me would be known now. I at least felt comforted by the thought that Hiruzen would take my side, as for the others...I wasn't so sure. But even so, I had too.

"Naruto Uzumaki." I stated proudly of having him as my friend. Everyone's eyes immediately widened and looked at me with surprise. The Hokage however had the reaction that I would never have had imagined, and everyone else just turned towards him in equal surprise.

The Hokage had broke out into a deep laugh. I was very confused, I didn't know what else to do but to stare at the old man. Once he calmed down and just chuckled he looked over to me with a new kind of look on his face. One that looked almost like gratitude.

"I should have known you were his little friend. Who else has pink hair? I can't believe I hadn't realized...but then, he never did tell me your name." He said and made me and the others snap out of our surprise.

"He...told you about me?" I asked, knowing full well Naruto would blab to his "Jiji". The Hokage nodded and smiled at me warmly.

"Yes all the time. Of all sorts of stuff, I was actually planning on meeting you soon. I would have never imagined you to be here." He stated and I smiled.

"Why hadn't he told you my name? He spoke about you often as well." I said and he chuckled.

"Probably because I would find you just as smart as he said and make you enter the academy early." He answered honestly. I chuckled at how cute Naruto could be when keeping his friends to himself. I didn't mind, I was his first friend that was the same age as him. I looked back up to him seriously.

"Will you still make me enter early?" I asked and the room turned serious once again.

"No." He stated and I smiled brightly towards him. Feeling very relieved.

"Why not? She obviously fits the requirements?" Hiashi stated. Hiruzen looked over to him.

"Hiashi...you know just as much as everyone else here about Naruto-kun. He has finally been able to make a friend in Sakura-chan, something all of you should be doing." He chided. Hiashi nodded and stayed quiet as well as the others.

"Sakura-chan, what do you know about Naruto-kun?" The Hokage asked me. I wasn't planning on telling them that I knew everything or else they would question it.

"Not much. I've only just known him for a month...I have noticed that people bully him a lot but I don't know why." I answered as best as I could. He seemed to have believed me, because he smiled down at me.

"He's an orphaned child and very kind when you get to know him but the people don't see him like you and I do." He answered. I smiled up to him. He didn't have to worry, sooner or later they'll think I'm worse and start seeing him differently.

"Your a nice kid Sakura-chan!" Exclaimed Shisui as he patted my head. I swatted his hand away and froze when I heard the Hokage speak.

"Actually Naruto-kun has confided in me how scary you can be." He said.

"Then why are you repeating it Hokage-sama?" Asked Kakashi and I couldn't agree more.

"I know you guys won't tell. So, Sakura-chan you seem to be handling the bullies quite well, and I'm sure you know what I'm talking about." He said with a knowing twinkle in his eyes. I knew that all the stares of curiosity had sky rocketed when I felt my face burn up. The moment I knew he had somehow found out about my over-stepping boundaries with the others, I couldn't help but blush. The thought of being caught by the Hokage that I was lecturing older people twice my size, made me think that perhaps I should have chosen other methods.

"Sakura-chan...are you blushing?! What did you do?" Shisui just had to comment on it. Gods, he was like a guy version of Inner, who was currently attempting to stop giggling. I ignored him and pushed his hand away as I looked over to Hiruzen who along with the others looked very amused at my situation.

"Did he tell you?" I asked, feeling the blush fade away.

"He told me his version which was very...interesting. I heard the real version from someone who had seen the situation and reported it back to me." He answered not knowing that I knew about the ANBU. I looked down at the table in wonder.

"...So there was someone watching..." I whispered unintentionally. When I realized my mistake, I looked up towards a surprised Hokage.

"Sakura-chan...did you see them...or perhaps, sensed?" He asked me. I stayed quiet, not really knowing how I should answer.

"So you did." Answered Shikaku who must have taken my silence as confirmation.

"Now that it's being brought up. Sakura-san, are you perhaps suppressing your chakra?" Fugaku asked and I widened my eyes. How could they have possibly-. I quickly turned to Hizashi and Hiashi.

"So you are. And you know of their Byakugan." Said Shikaku. I was really starting to hate how he could read me so well. I just hoped he didn't find out other things.

"Sakura-chan, how is it that you know such advanced techniques and of their Byakugan? Surely your father hasn't shown you such dangerous techniques and I'm not only talking about suppressing your chakra." Hiruzen asked and I gulped. He must be referring to what I did before with Naruto's bullies.

"I read a lot." I answered which was technically true.

"But how can you concentrate on your chakra and other things?" Hizashi asked.

"I've been doing chakra practices since the beginning, so it comes naturally." I answered, hopefully they just took that as me having talents with chakra and not get any closer to finding out about Inner.

"Sakura-chan you have so much talent. Are you sure you don't want to enter the academy?" Asked Hiruzen. I nodded in resolve.

"I'm sure." I answered and besides I've gotten this far without it. I can just continue to practice on my own. Hiruzen nodded and stood, making me almost jump in joy from the meaning behind it.

"It is decided, you will enter with the others your age. Sakura-chan come with me tomorrow to the Hokage tower to discuss things. Naruto-kun should also be there when we finish up." He said. I was a bit surprised but then nodded in agreement.

"That's fine. I had to meet Naruto-san tomorrow anyway." I answered and got up when everyone else did. We were making our way back to the dinning room when I felt the chakra around us.

"I was originally going to ask you why you seemed to be comfortable being by yourself, but it seems I don't need to anymore." Hiruzen stated beside me. So that was why he had frowned earlier, for thinking I couldn't handle myself alone. I suppose that's his natural protective nature when it comes to a three year old.

"Hokage-sama, actually I lied to you earlier." I honestly told him.

**"What the heck are you doing?! We just got out of one bad situation and now you want to go into another one!"** Inner shouted in disbelief. Hiruzen and the others looked down at me surprised.

"What do you mean?" He asked and I looked around.

"You had asked me if something was wrong. I hadn't answered truthfully because I didn't know if I was right but I sense chakra all around...Is that normal?" I asked so they wouldn't get too suspicious. I just wanted them to know that I understood chakra better than what they thought I did and they didn't have to worry.

"I'm really impressed Sakura-chan. Though, there's nothing for you to worry about." He answered and I nodded. So he wasn't going to admit that they had put up a genjutsu. Well, it doesn't matter, I was too happy right now. They had accepted my decision and the Hokage had even encouraged it. And they didn't seem suspicious of me anymore, they looked impressed with my skills and that was way better than being suspicious of me.

I looked up to the moon that was in clear view now that they weren't surrounding me. I smiled and felt things going back to normal. Tomorrow's meeting with the Hokage wouldn't be so bad now that I knew he believed me.

* * *

**Only a few more chapters before the time skip happens and she gets closer to the Uchiha massacre, that may or may not happen! Next update will wrap things up with the meeting and maybe it'll be a longer chapter. Hopefully you guys enjoyed the chapter and keep reading and reviewing!**


	24. Chapter 24

**Author's Note:** A review for the last chapter made me realize that maybe I should ask you guys if you like the way I'm portraying some characters as well as the situations. If you guys could please leave a review letting me know if you find them good or bad. I try to make them believable but this is Fanfiction so every person reading should be aware that it wont follow the original plot. Like mine, I know the clan heads in the anime/manga seem like they wouldn't care at all what happens to Naruto or anyone else. So, I changed things around and made them more approachable and I like how they turned out. So please understand that if something's different, I will explain why in the Author's Note section. Thanks again for all the readers who like the story, even with all the changes and for those who don't, sorry it wasn't to your liking.

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Not Expected**

**Sakura's POV**

We arrived back to the dinning room which was still under the genjutsu. I walked over to Ino and wondered how things were supposed to go back to normal if I didn't know what she would be talking about. When I sat down, I felt the chakra fade away slowly and once it was gone I looked over to Ino. She was quietly eating pastries.

"Didn't you already eat some?" I asked her as she looked over to me with a pout.

"Well its not my fault that they're so good!" She exclaimed with a blush. I smiled and shook my head. Everything felt normal.

**"Ino-pig is so cute when embarrassed!"** Inner squealed. I nodded my agreement and reached for a pastry for myself.

It was getting close to bed time and I was feeling rather tired. The whole day has just completely mentally exhausted me. I'm sure Inner was really tired too. She had been concentrating on our chakra for most of the day, she deserved the rest.

Right when we finished our pastries, Takara stood and announced bed time for the children. I stood up along with Ino and the others as we followed Shikamaru's mom to the room we would be using.

When we entered the room we noticed our stuff was already there. Futons were also laid out for us, each one having their own space; but close enough to feel comfortable. The girls were taken to another room to get ready for bed, while the boys changed as well.

Madoka had sent me a pink nightgown that had purple butterflies on it. Ino had on some blue soft pajama pants and a sleeveless blue shirt. The whole outfit had white flowers printed on it. Hinata had a light pink nightgown that had light blue circles as prints. When we finished with brushing our teeth and getting everything ready for bed, we returned to the room. The boys had also changed into their pajamas. Theirs were plain and single colored with their clan symbol on the back. Sasuke was a dark blue. Shikamaru was green and Choji's was red. Shino had black, Neji's was white and Kiba's pajamas were brown.

When we walked inside, Ino immediately chose a light colored futon that was far away from the others.

"Come on Sakura-chan!" She said from across the room. I sighed and turned over to Hinata who fidgeting behind me. I noticed that most of the boys were fine on their own.

"Ne, Hinata-san. Would you like to sleep close to us?" I asked as I looked over to her. She looked surprised for a second before nodding shyly. I smiled and turned around walking towards Ino, with Hinata behind me.

"Alright kids! Time to sleep!" Yoshino instructed. I looked around and was slightly surprised that the kids were actually moving towards their futon.

'Usually in sleepovers, there's bound to be some kids who don't want to sleep. And I know for sure that there are a few of those here.' I thought as I looked at Ino get comfortable in her futon.

"Goodnight kids!" She said and we all returned it. The peacefulness lasted only three minutes after she had left before whispering was heard. I turned my head to my left and noticed Ino was still wide awake and sitting up.

'Hmm, their pretty smart to wait until they were completely alone.' I thought as I looked around.

**"I knew it was too good to be true."** Inner stated tiredly. I turned myself around onto my tummy and noticed that Kiba was fully awake and sitting next to Akamaru.

"Ino...go to sleep..." Shikamaru groaned. As he curled up inside his futon. I couldn't agree more.

"No! I'm not tired!" She said but kept it quiet. I rolled my eyes at her comment. I placed my chin on my crossed arms in front of me and just observed the situation.

"Well some of us are trying to sleep." He countered.

"Nuh-uh! Look around you." She commanded. He did so and noticed along with me that everyone was indeed awake, but with different reasons. I was only awake because I knew Ino wouldn't let me sleep if I closed my eyes. So I stayed awake but stayed laid down. I heard Shikamaru sigh and turn over like me.

"So, what should we do?" Asked Kiba as he looked around to see if we had any ideas.

"Someone think of a good game." Ino stated and everyone thought to themselves for awhile. I felt a sudden deja vu moment as I laid here, watching them. Back in my other world, I was always the one chosen to take care of the kids when my sister had sleepovers with friends or cousins. They liked picking me for the fact that I wasn't strict and allowed them to get away with a bunch of stuff. They stayed up late and played games and ate late night snacks...it was very good times. Very happy and I enjoyed all the times I spent with my family. This moment just happened to bring out a very yearnful feeling from within me. I hid my face in my crossed arms and waited for the feeling to pass. I was grateful that Inner didn't question my sudden strong emotion that I knew she felt. I took a deep shaky breath and looked back up.

"Ah-ha! I got it! Let's play truth or dare!" Ino suggested and I chuckled at the memories that game brought up from my world. No one disagreed to play but then Kiba was the only one to actually agree cheerfully.

"Alright! Who's first?" Asked Kiba as he looked over to Ino.

"Hmm, I don't know..." She stated as she tapped her chin in thought.

"Guess a number one through twenty." Shikamaru stated with a yawn afterwards. Ino nodded brightly and we all thought about a number.

"Hmm...twenty!" Ino stated confidently. I chuckled at her choice. No one choses the last number and gets it right. Shikamaru then looked over to me.

"Six." I stated. He proceeded to look towards all the kids.

"...F-Fourteen..." Hinata answered quietly.

"Eighteen." Choji said. Shikamaru then looked to his right.

"Eight." Stated Neji.

"Twelve." Sasuke said with a tinge of confidence.

"Sixteen." Said Shino very quietly.

"One!" Kiba exclaimed as he pointed one finger in the air. That was actually the number I predicted he would pick.

"It was five." He said as he looked over to me.

"Go Sakura-chan!" Ino encouraged and I sighed while looking over to Choji.

"Yeah yeah. Truth or Dare Choji-san." I asked the boy who looked shocked that he was picked first.

"Truth." He answered quietly. I nodded and pretended to think for a while.

"Is it true the Akimichi clan changes their calories into chakra?" I asked the boy. He nodded towards me.

"That's true." He said timidly. I smiled up to him.

"That's pretty amazing! I wonder how that works exactly?" I said, the last part was more to myself. I was actually really curious as to how they were able to perform such things, but then I have to remind myself of all the other crazy techniques.

"How do you know about that?" Shikamaru asked me.

"I read a lot." I answered simply before turning back to Choji.

"Uhm...Shikamaru. Truth or Dare?" He asked.

"Dare." He said in a lazy manner.

"I dare you to not watch clouds for the whole day tomorrow." Choji said with a chuckle. Ino also broke out into a giggle when she looked at his face. Shikamaru was looking at Choji as if he was crazy.

"...fine." He mumbled finally giving in.

"Ino, Truth or Dare?" He asked and she smiled but then stopped when she saw the look that was on his face.

"Truth..." She chose uncertainly.

"Is it true you have a crush on someone?" He asked teasingly. I chuckled and looked at Ino's predictable reaction. She blushed bright red at his question. Well, at least he asked it subtly.

"...Yes..." She answered shyly. Kiba busted out laughing at her change in attitude and Hinata was also red for whatever reason that may be. After a few seconds her blush went down and she frowned over to Kiba.

"Kiba, truth or dare?" Ino asked, she was leaving the honorifics just like some of the others who didn't care. I would also just call them by name but until I got more aquainted with them. Madoka would probably give me the whole lecture again if she heard me not using them.

"Dare!" Kiba exclaimed. Ino grinned mischievously. Uh-oh, this wouldn't be good for the poor boy.

"Hehehe, I dare you to sneak into the kitchen and grab us all a snack." Ino commanded.

Oh crap, that was a big "no no." that I used to tell the kids back in my world. I explained that they could play whatever as long as they followed a few rules.

One, was obviously to keep quiet. Two was for them to sleep at midnight. And three, don't go out of the room. If they were to get caught by the adults, we would all get scolded.

"Ino-chan...I don't think that's a good idea..." I said and she waved me off.

"It's okay Sakura-chan. Kiba picked dare so he has to do it!" She exclaimed as we looked over to Kiba. Crap...he was grinning like a madman.

"I'll do it!" He stated and I sighed. I looked over to the others in hopes that they would agree. Nope, they all looked pretty interested with the dare...well maybe everyone besides Hinata and Shino.

Kiba stood from his futon, followed by Akamaru.

"I'll be back guys!" He stated before walking out of the room.

We waited for five minutes and Kiba and Akamaru had yet to return.

"He should have been back by now." Neji spoke up. The same thought going through my mind. Even as a child, he still should have been able to go and come back quickly...That is if he didn't get caught. I was about to suggest someone go look for him, preferably me. When a scream was heard...it was childishly high pitched but unmistakably Kiba. I frowned and looked over to the others, who seemed to have also heard it. Even Shikamaru had sat up from his lazy position.

"Ino-chan you and I should go. The rest should just pretend to be sleeping, I have a plan. If we don't cone back in ten minutes, then we were caught. If that were to happen, the best thing to do would be just to sleep." I said and grabbed Ino's wrist and pulled her towards the door.

"Wait! Why do you get to go?" Sasuke asked and I rolled my eyes.

"Do you have a plan?" I asked. He only frowned and said nothing when we walked out. Closing the door behind me slowly, I turned over to Ino.

"So what's the plan?" She asked me.

"Alright, I want you to lead us towards the adults. When we get there you have to act worried and scared, just as if you would when you have a nightmare. I will do the talking. If they ask about your nightmare than be sure you have one made up and ready to revolve around the scream." I informed in a quiet whisper. She nodded almost excitedly. I nodded and we began our walk towards the others, thinking of possible scenarios.

I took us three minutes to arrive in front of the doors that opened up to the dinning room. Hopefully the lights on the others side meant that they were still in there. I looked over to Ino and nodded when I had her attention. I saw her grip onto my right forearm and began to tremble. I was amazed at how good she was in acting. It was very believable.

I knocked on the door, so they could know we were here. The door soon slid open by Naomi.

"Ino? Sakura-chan?" She asked confused by our appearance here so late.

I noticed that everyone was in there, but Kiba was not...There was, however, that same chakra sense that a genjutsu felt like in the corner. Maybe they had placed a genjutsu there so we wouldn't see him...Did they know we were coming?...probably. I looked up towards Naomi with a tired smile.

"Did you hear anything a few minutes ago?" I asked trying to make my voice sound groggy from sleep. Having singing classes in my old world helped change the sound of my voice greatly. I may not be as good of an actress as Ino, but I was decent.

"No, I didn't. Did you guys hear anything?" She asked the others. I noticed the table had been cleaned but a few were still eating pastries. How could Shisui eat so much?

"No. We didn't" answered Tsume. Before they could question us. I looked over towards Ino.

"See, it was just a nightmare. Let's go back to sleep." I said trying to sound tiered. Ino squeezed her eyes tightly and practically hugged my arm.

"...But...I heard it..." Ino said quietly. I was very impressed with her improvising. I turned so my back was facing them and patted her head with a smile.

**"Ino-pig is too good at that." **Inner stated as we watched her tremble.

"It's okay. It was just a bad dream. You'll forget it once you sleep again." I said and Ino and I weren't able to continue the charade.

"You would have been very believable, if it weren't for the fact that we saw everything." Hiashi spoke and I winced. Of course I had thought about his and Hizashi's Byakugan. I just wasn't sure they would bother checking up on us.

"...Eh?...what do you mean?" Ino asked worriedly I sighed and patted her head again.

"It means we were caught." I said, not even masking my voice. Ino straightened up and looked worried but for a real reason now. We both looked back to the adults.

"Sakura-chan, I'm surprised you didn't remember about the Byakugan." Shikakau said. Of course I remembered.

"I didn't think you would be checking up on us." I said.

"In a room filled with mischievous children, a parent just has to check up on them." Hiashi said and looked over to me. Was he stating that I was mischievous or was he just making his point across?

I'm pretty sure he was still miffed about my reason for not entering the academy. The reason why him and some of the others were surprised, was probably due more to my reason than to Naruto himself, who they probably didn't care about. I'm sure all the adults know that the nine-tails is sealed within Naruto and that the villagers bully him. Most likely they also know that civilians are the ones who bully him the most, since they don't know the full details. Although they don't seem to care whether their own children associate with him, they also don't say to be friends with the poor boy. That was what angered me the most, why couldn't they just be nicer to Naruto. It's not like it was him who attacked the village...and it wasn't even the nine-tails fault. Tobi was the one to control him in the first place. I shook my head of such thoughts and focused back on the outside.

"Girls, you know you have to receive the same punishment as Kiba-kun for disobeying correct." Naomi stated. Ino whimpered and stayed quiet while I nodded up to Naomi with no doubt. I knew if we were caught, we would be scolded somehow. I felt the chakra disperse and looked over to the corner.

Kiba was sitting very dejectedly in a traditional form of sitting and kept wiggling. Akamaru was sitting up straight with no slouch. I turned back to Ino who had groaned.

"You will sit there until we tell you to get up. And Sakura-chan, just because you can sit there for hours don't think you've got it easy. You are not allowed to fall asleep, understood?" She asked and I simply nodded. This was just great. It would have been fine if I could just sit and sleep but now I can't even sleep.

Ino sat in her position slowly and incorrectly beside Kiba, who looked apologetically up at us. I swiftly sat and got into my already accustomed sitting position. I noticed that he had a small bruise on his forehead, probably a good whack from his mother.

'Sorry Inner. You can rest, I'll take over.' I said and she nodded tiredly. I quickly concentrated on my chakra and kept it suppressed just as Inner had. it wasn't hard to keep it suppressed it was just weird to do so with my eyes opened. When I did my chakra exercises, usually I closed my eyes. I suppose I can practice right now that I have nothing better to do.

It was five minutes later that a knock on the door was heard and broke the silence within the room. I was pretty grateful. The adults, Shisui, Hana and Itachi did nothing but stare at the four of us, it was unnerving.

When the door was pulled open, I wanted to face palm myself. The rest of the kids were standing outside. They looked over to us and then back to the adults.

"We were awake too, so we deserve the same punishment." Shikamaru stated and just like that made his way over to us. He sat beside me and the others followed his example quietly. Sasuke even complied without a frown on his face. I sighed with a smile, these kids would surely only continue to cause me trouble in the future. I looked to my left at Ino. I saw her wiggle in place uncomfortably.

"Ino-chan next time..." I started my sentence.

"Leave us out of it." Shikamaru finished for me. I looked to my right towards Shikamaru. We both nodded simultaneously, mentally agreeing on the same thing.

We had spent a whole hour sitting in that position, and although it didn't bother me, I was really tired. The others had started cramping up after fifteen minutes, I was very surprised they lasted that long. At one point, my mind had found it funny that everyone around us was wiggling around. Though I suppose I wasn't any better. I didn't wiggle in pain but I did doze off a few times. Concentrating on my chakra kept me awake but sometimes I would jolt awake. It seems I had only closed my eyes for a second because no one said anything about it. Naomi and Takara had double teamed and lectured us the whole hour.

After the hour was up, Naomi had dismissed up from the room. We walked back in silence and fell asleep instantly when our bodies hit the futons.

**Next morning**

It took me a few seconds to remember where I was. I sighed and stretched my hands out to pop my bones. Sitting up, I realized I was the third one up. Neji and Shino were fixing their futons.

"Good morning." I whispered as I finished stretching and yawning. They returned the greeting in equal volume.

After stretching, I too got up and fixed my futon. We quietly folded them and placed them back in the closet. When I finished stacking up my futon over Shino's, the door slid open revealing Hana on the other side.

"Oh, some of you guys are already awake. You three can come down and eat breakfast." She said. I looked over to the other two. They shrugged and I turned back to Hana and nodded. We followed her quietly out the room and towards the room we would use for breakfast.

"By the way, I don't think I've introduced myself. I'm Hana Inuzuka, Kiba's older sister." She introduced. I smiled and nodded.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Sakura Haruno." I said up to the her as she nodded down to me. She seemed to be Itachi's age, considering how young she looks. So around nine years old I concluded as we walked the hallways.

We arrived in the room that I had first found Neji in. The fusuma doors were opened to make the room beside it connect. All the adults were already awake and I was even surprised to see Sora perched on the Hokage's shoulder.

"Good morning!" Exclaimed Takara cheerfully. I bowed and returned the greeting along with the others. She made her way over to us and lead us to some empty spots.

"Well now we know who the early risers are!" She stated. I wish I hadn't woken up so early, it was seven in the morning if the clock on the wall was right. I can't even believe myself for waking up so early; but then, I wasn't really at my house where if I didn't have anything planned, I would sleep in. Then again I was used to waking up far earlier if I had something to do here and in my other world. Not that I liked it.

"Oh and Sora already ate." She informed me and I thanked her as I looked over to him.

"He's a very calm hawk." Hiruzen stated as he patted Sora's head. I smiled and nodded, fully aware of all of his attitudes.

For the next few minutes, all three of us ate breakfast and talked with some of the adults. Throughout breakfast I noticed that some adults were missing. And although I didn't ask, they had explained to me where some had gone. Tsume, Shibi, and Hiashi had inner clan meetings and even though they didn't say anything about Kakashi, I knew he was in ANBU, so that was all I needed to know. After we finished I couldn't help but think our three person group was very...odd. I mean, I'm fine with both of them, we're all just very quiet people.

"So what will you be doing now Sakura-chan?" Takara asked curiously. I thought about something the three us could do while we waited.

"I was thinking of meditating while the others woke up." I answered her and then turned to the two boys.

"Do you want to join me?" I asked and waited for them to nod before standing up. I watched the others follow my action. I then turned towards the mothers and thanked them for the meal. When I made my way towards the door, I felt a small weight land on my shoulder. Smiling up to Sora, I allowed him to perform his customary greeting. When I stepped out of the room, I waited for the others and then we made our way outside to find a place to meditate.

"Where should we go?" I asked for their opinion as I looked around.

"What about that tree?" Shino asked, speaking up for the second time that day. I looked over to where he had mentioned and noticed a small tree. It was a small size compared to the others but big enough to fit all three under it and get enough shade. I nodded my agreement and saw Neji nod too.

We made our way over to the tree and sat cross legged underneath it. The two boys immediately closed their eyes and were free to concentrate on their surroundings. I, on the other hand was really restricted to what I concentrated on. I couldn't do chakra exercises or else the others would just bring it up and I was just tired of their suspicions. So it was best to keep things safe and just help expand my normal senses.

It was an hour later when the next batch of kids woke up. The group consisted of Shikamaru, Choji, and strangely enough Hinata. That was another wierd group but Hinata herself looked a bit okay, she wasn't red in the face, she seemed really calm. I guess she was just a morning person.

We continued to meditate while they ate breakfast and soon they joined us. Now we were trying to figure out what to do to pass the time while Sasuke, Kiba, and Ino woke up.

"Do you want to play a game of Shogi?" Asked Shikamaru. I smiled at him and nodded. The others had agreed to come along and look at our game. In fact Shino and Neji were also going to play, but a separate game of course, with each other. Hinata and Choji were content on watching since they didn't know how to play.

We walked into the same room as before and this time, Shikamaru pulled out another board so the others could play.

The game between us started off rather slow. I could see he was analyzing my way of playing and so, I did as well. The game only lasted thirty minutes, much different than my last game. unfortunately for me this was my second loss at Shogi, but this gave me a good idea of how he played. I sighed and looked up to Shikamaru who sent me a lazy smile filled with hidden victory.

"That was a good game...at least I was able to win." He stated and I raised an eyebrow in question.

"Dad always wins." He said with a dejected tone. I smiled at him knowingly.

"Well, I guess that brought a nice change in your losing streak." I stated jokingly.

"Yeah, but you were really good. There were moments, I didn't know what you were planning. I'm sure if you continue like that, you'll soon win too." He stated and I smiled. Realizing that the others where still playing, I had an idea.

"How about a game of Go?" I asked him. He nodded and went over to another table on the back. He waved me over and I followed.

"I'm not so confident I'll win against you in Go." He stated honestly as he took a seat.

"Why?" I asked as I too sat down. He scoffed quietly and started to get a handful of white stones.

"I heard about your victory against Sasuke's dad." He answered me. So that piece of information was travelling pretty fast. I placed down one black stone, and soon noticed that I had gotten it right.

Once he placed the first stone down, I zoned everything else but the game and Inner out. This was one game I had a good knowledge of, so I wanted to use my own skills instead of Katsu's strategies.

I enjoyed the game and was a bit disappointed to know that it had ended thirty minutes later. If I was honest, Shikamaru was better in Shogi, while I in Go.

"See, I knew I wouldn't win." He said with a sigh as he looked onto the board. I smiled and looked at it as well.

"You were good." I said as I looked back up. Only until a groan was heard did I notice the others had already woken up and arrived.

"Ino-chan, I didn't even noticed you guys were here." I told her. She rolled her eyes.

"I know! I tried to get your attention but you wouldn't look away from the game! Your not even dressed for the day." She said and I looked down only now noticing.

"That's right, it seems we forgot from all the waiting." I said and stood up along with the other two who were up at the same time as me.

After getting changed, we made our way back outside. Everyone was waiting and preparing to leave.

"Bye Sakura-chan! I'll see you next week!" She stated referring to our weekly play dates. I nodded and waved goodbye to her. Inoichi patted my head before leaving while Naomi waved and smiled sweetly her goodbye. I bid Kiba, Akamaru and Hana goodbye next, along with Shino who left alone. Fugaku and Sasuke nodded their goodbyes while Shisui ruffled my hair and Itachi sighed and fixed it. Hizashi, Neji, and Hinata left last and I said goodbye while looking back to Shikamaru and Choji, who was staying until later.

"Ready to go Sakura-chan?" Hiruzen asked as I looked up to him.

"Whenever your ready." I said as I sent Sora home to wait for me there. The Hokage and I then made our way out of the Nara's home and to the road that would lead us to the streets.

"Did you have fun?" He asked me nicely and I nodded up to him.

"Getting to meet the other kids was fun." I said and looked at all the stands once we arrived at the busy market place.

"That's really good. Hopefully you'll be able to play with them again sometime." He said as he looked at his villagers happily shop around.

"That would be really great." I agreed and noticed the tower not to far away.

"Have you ever been around here?" He asked as we walked. I looked around and noticed the mountain with the Hokage faces on it.

"No, I've been meaning to go up the mountain, but I always have something else to do." I told him honestly. He nodded and looked down at me with a smile.

"I'll take you up there with Naruto if you would like." He said and I nodded up to him. We walked into the tower and made our way up to his office. Before going up the stairs, his secretary jumped out of her chair and had her eyes on me. She was a young looking woman, maybe in her twenties.

"Oh my gosh! Your so cute!" She squealed as she looked at me. I smiled and bowed slightly.

"Hello." I said and she squealed.

"Hello little girl! I'm Aya and you're...?" She asked me as she looked across the room.

"Sakura Haruno. Nice to meet you Aya-san." I greeted and was grateful she was behind her counter. I'm sure if she wasn't she would have squeezed me to death; and I wasn't ready to die. We bid goodbye and made our way up the stairs.

"Aya is one of our secretaries here." The Hokage explained as we walked.

"One of them?" I asked not seeing anymore around.

"They switch out." He answered and I nodded. Every step I took was giving me a feeling I couldn't understand. Was I excited or anxious?

**"This is pretty exciting!"** Inner shouted in excitement, seemingly not feeling what I did. I half agreed with her as I climbed the stairs behind the Hokage. It didn't take much longer before we arrived at the door and that feeling increased. There was red flags now and I knew I couldn't just say I was leaving, so I stepped in slowly after him.

He walked over to his desk and sat on his comfy looking black chair. He intertwined his fingers as he set his elbows on his table. I stood in front of his desk and waited with mixed feelings for him to say something.

"Sakura-chan." He started and I gulped quietly. The tone of his voice was much different from before. I wasn't even sure if I was supposed to speak up.

"I want you to tell me the truth. No lying this time." He said seriously and my eyes widened. I couldn't think, my mind blanked out, my breathing was stopped as if someone had punched me. I just stood there, looking at him and hardly listening to Inner's turmoil and screams of future torture.

'This is...not how I expected my day would turn out...'

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**Cliffhanger! Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and if something just really bugs you then message me and explain to me what it is and how you would like me to fix it. I really do consider your advice and I'm really thankful for it. Personal opinions are encouraged but please be mindful of everyone else's opinions. So hopefully you continue to read and review whatever the length may be, I enjoy reading all the different reviews! **


	25. Chapter 25

**Authors Note:** Hey guys! I had to post this a bit early because I wasn't going to be able to do it later. Sorry for the cliffhanger, it was funny reading some of the reviews. Not to worry though, here is the next chapter. Hope you guys like it and I'm also glad you like the way I'm writing this.

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Believe In Me**

**Sakura's POV**

"Sakura-chan you can tell me the real reason as to why your holding your abilities back yourself." Hiruzen repeated his question once more.

**"What do we do now?!"** Inner shouted in my head and started to run around in circles.

'Calm down! I have a plan...sort of...' I said as I thought about this sudden situation.

**"How do you have a plan?! Wait! Nevermind that, what is your plan?!"** She asked as she stopped running.

'This is a very, very important question that we have to answer...but there are secrets we know that can't be told. I have had a whole year to think of all sorts of situations like this and I have decided not to speak about who I am and where I'm from to anyone; as well as tell no one about you, of course. Hiruzen obviously knows we have a secret and hopefully he thinks we only have one. It's decided Inner, lets tell him about your new ability, it's the only_ secret_ we can tell.' I said as I continued to stare at him. This had to work, if not he would find out I'm not really Sakura and that the real one is in my head. He'll probably think I'm some spy and trapped her there and then he'll take us away from Madoka and Kioshi.

**"But wont he ask us stuff about it?!"** She screamed out to me in confusion.

'Yes, he will and that's okay. It will actually even give us access to certain things if he knows. I told you, I have a plan. All you need to do is make him sense all the things we want him to sense. For example, just now he sensed our hesitation because you slipped and panicked, but that's okay. Once I start explaining things I want you to make him sense that we are being truthful, okay? Just believe in me.' I said to her. She nodded and went back to concentrating. I cleared my throat and took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry...it's just hard to explain." I spoke up and felt the nervous feeling inside me surround me with no effort. He nodded and waited for me to continue. I looked around discreetly, did he place a silencing jutsu? Even if he did, I wasn't confident enough to tell him my secret, let alone even in this room.

"Hokage-sama...would you please make sure this stays between us." I said and looked around openly, trying to give him a hint.

"Of course." He said and did some hand signs before I sensed his chakra surround us.

"The room has become sound proof." He informed and I bit the inside of my cheek.

"I'm sorry...but..." I couldn't even finish. How was I supposed to tell him I didn't trust his room. Even though I know he was powerful enough to place a strong jutsu around us...but that also didn't stop other strong shinobi from casting equal if not stronger jutsu's. If I was correct, he also had ANBU stationed in places where they could guard and overhear.

"Is what you have to say so important you can't even trust my room?" He asked. I gulped inaudibly and couldn't think of anything to say so I just nodded.

"Hokage-sama, I have a way for only the both of us to speak and listen, without others knowing...If you could please extended your hand...This actually ties with my secret." I stated and watched as he extended his hand towards me. I smiled gratefully towards him for complying and walked across the room.

'Inner, make sure he can only listen and speak, nothing more.' I stated seriously.

**"Roger that!"** Inner saluted and I could practically feel her in my mind. She was fortifying it and making it completely sealed off. When I arrived in front of his desk, I reached up and was raising my hand uncomfortably due to my short height. I stood on my tippy toes and gently placed my hand into his much bigger one. I felt his older, calloused hands close around mine. My hand wasn't held tightly or hurtful but I knew it had a silent meaning behind it..._No turning back_.

He wasn't currently thinking about anything and I wasn't getting any memories, probably Inner's doing.

_"Can you hear me?"_ I asked as I looked up to him. His eyes widened and he unintentionally tightened his hand. I waited until he nodded down to me and loosened his grip.

_"How are you doing this?"_ He asked and since this was only my second time communicating with anyone, I was trying to accustome myself to the feeling. His words reverberated and tickled inside my head. It felt very strange feeling his voice tickle but that was the best I could describe the feeling. I was sure that later when I had gotten more used to it, it wouldn't be so wierd.

_"I don't know...I've had it since I was younger..."_ I said, not really lying but also leaving things out.

_"Is this a Kekkai Genkai? Like the Inoichi clan?"_ He asked.

_"I don't think so. None of my family member have it and I suppose it's kind of like the Inoichi's."_ I said and watched the different expressions pass through his features.

_"Why hadn't you said anything about this before? Do your parents know?"_ He asked and I shook my head no.

_"I didn't want to say anything because I didn't know how too...and your the first person that knows..."_ I told him.

_"So what can you do? Just communicate?"_ He asked, looking more accustomed to the feeling. Alright, this was the moment to convince him.

_"I don't know much about it, but so far I can only communicate while I directly touch someone with my hands. I can also see their memories...and that's about all I know."_ I explained, altering a few things here and there.

_"I see...and I suppose you would know if someone was lying to you and them you, since it's an open connection of the minds."_ He stated and I thought about it for awhile. I suppose I could know if someone was lying but they certainly couldn't because Inner wouldn't allow them to or let them listen to my thoughts. I nodded up to him and just let that piece of information unknown to him.

_"With more practice I'm sure I could get better at it...but right now, it's just small stuff."_ I said not telling him I could already do that if I wanted to. He nodded and smiled.

_"Would you mind telling me all you know about this ability?"_ He asked, going back to his gentle tone of voice. I smiled up to him and nodded.

For the next few minutes, we stayed in the same position until I finished explaining things to him. There were a few different things that I changed; but I knew he believed me since Inner was constantly telling me what he felt. I also told him I could see the memories people would have in the future...of course that was a lie but he didn't know I knew the plot of this world...even if it wasn't the real anime/manga. I told him my visions were vague because I had yet to master it; but in reality I didn't want him to utilize this ability so soon. I even told him a few things I knew about him that others didn't about his younger life. After that, he seemed to have believed me completely, since there wasn't any possible way for a three year old to know such things that happened years ago.

_"It must have been a strange experience huh?"_ He asked and I nodded truthfully. It was actually very surprising when I had found out about it. I was still only getting used to seeing the memories.

_"I wonder what other possibilities there could be for you. Are you planning on enhancing this skill?"_ He asked and I nodded.

_"Yes. It seems really helpful for the future. Ne Hokage-sama...do you think this could stay between the two of us?"_ I asked him and waited for his reply.

_"I agree with you. It's too dangerous to tell other people, they may exploit it. You can also decided whether you wish to tell people you trust, such as your parents."_ He said and I smiled and nodded in thanks.

_"Hokage-sama...What if I see things for the future? Should we help prevent it? Or do you think we shouldn't?__"_ I asked. He would most likely agree in order to protect the village. If he did, that would make me less suspicious when I started changing major events in the plot. It was actually a really good idea to have the Hokage on my side than be suspicious of me. And I was confident in keeping my other secrets safe...even if I had to lie to powerful shinobi. I would just have to ask Ino to teach me her acting skills.

_"I think you received this ability for a reason Sakura-chan. If we were not meant to help change our future, then why would you possibly have the gift?...Tell me, is that a reason for lying about starting early?"_ He asked me. I smiled and nodded slowly.

_"I was telling you the truth about Naruto-san...He and I are really good friends...but I did get a vision. It was at one point where I made contact with Naruto-san. I saw him having really hard times in the future."_ I explained. He smiled and patted my head with his left hand.

_"Thank you for taking care of that boy."_ He said sincerely. I nodded.

_"I've...seen some of his memories...they're really sad..."_ I said and looked up sadly. He too had a sad expression.

_"I've seen his moments too, with this."_ He said gesturing his left hand to his crystal ball on the table. We stared at it and soon an image appeared. Naruto was running quickly towards the tower and passing through many villagers, who threw mean looks in his direction.

_"This is pretty cool."_ I said trying to show him that I was still a child after all. He chuckled and nodded.

_"It is, it's called the Telescope technique. Allowing me to find anyone as long as I know their chakra pattern. Naruto-kun should be here soon, how about we talk about this some other time?"_ He asked and I nodded. We let go of our hands and I lowered my feet to the floor.

"That was indeed very impressive." The Hokage stated. I nodded in agreement.

**"That went better than I thought."** Inner stated with a loud sigh.

'I agree and I'm really, really glad he knows. Lets just make sure he only knows that.' I said and looked over to the Hokage. Might as well come out and say it.

"So you do believe me, right? You understand why I lied?" I asked trying to appear worriedly. He smiled and nodded.

"Don't worry Sakura-chan, I believe you and after experiencing it, I can see why you were scared and lied." He assured me. I sighed and smiled.

"Do you think others will suspect me?" I asked. That was the most important thing at the moment.

"If you stay calm, they won't suspect you. I've seen and been through a lot Sakura-chan, but you don't have to worry since you've already told me. I'll help you." He said and I was glad he didn't suspect me of anything else. I bowed down towards him in gratitude and respect.

"Thank you." I said and straightened up. We exchanged smiles and were unaffected by the loud slam of the door that was roughly opened and slammed against the wall.

"Jiji! Let's go for ramen!" Naruto shouted happily. He ran inside and stopped when he noticed me in the room.

"Sakura-chan! What are you doing here?!" He exclaimed surprised.

"Talking to Hokage-sama." I answered and watched as he looked between the two of us.

"Oh...So what did you talk about?" He asked trying to be subtle with his curiosity. I smiled and looked over to Hiruzen who smiled back.

"A bunch of boring stuff Naruto-san." I said playfully as I noticed his pout.

"...But I still wanna know..." He said very quietly. I chuckled at his childishness. I then looked behind me when the Hokage stood up.

"Naruto-kun, would you join me to take Sakura-chan up to the mountain?" Hiruzen asked Naruto who grinned and nodded.

"Yeah! Ne Sakura-chan, you've never been up there right? It's amazing! The best view in the village!" He stated rather loudly. I followed after the crazy kid and knew that Hiruzen was following behind me.

We left the tower, but not without talking to Aya, who surprised me by being friendly with Naruto. I was glad there was people like her around. Once out, we made our way up the stairs that were made from the side of the mountain behind the tower. Naruto was so hyper and happy he was chatting hurriedly all the way there. I had an idea that the view would be great. When we reached the top, I first observed the structure I could see.

At the very top of the mountain, far behind me was the Archive Library and the safe house. In front of me was the village. We stood a few feet away from their heads and I noticed Naruto jump on top of the fourth's head and sit on it. The part where I was standing on was flat and I noticed the whole thing was like a balcony-like structure, the top of their heads being the railing...or chairs, as Naruto was demonstrating.

"Come over here Sakura-chan! It looks so much better if you get on their heads!" He shouted. I smiled and looked up to the Hokage who was walking towards him. Although I could see the village from where I stood, I was sure the view would be better where Naruto sat. When I got close to Naruto, I noticed the climb would be a bit difficult. How did he get up there?

"Oh yeah...it's pretty hard to get up here if you don't know where to put your feet." He said and reached his hand out for me to take and help me up. I grabbed it and placed my foot on the boulder. It was funny watching Naruto struggle to help me up and had no memories transferred, which was probably due to Inner. Before he could tire himself out, I felt hands push me from my back. I was soon pushed/pulled on top with their help. I raised my head ready to give them my thanks but cut myself off. I went speechless, even Inner said nothing and I could feel her see what I was seeing with an amazed look.

I vaguely felt myself stand as close as I could to the edge. It was mid-afternoon and the puffy clouds travelled across the sky slowly. The sun brightly shined across the whole village, providing it's warmth to everyone and everything. I felt the warm wind gust through and tousled my hair and clothing gently. I was wearing blue sweat-pants along with a lighter shade of blue tee-shirt. They were loose enough to flow with the winds movements but tight enough for them not to restrict.

I took in a deep breath of fresh air while closing my eyes and spreading my arms wide open. I opened my eyes and breathed out feeling so tranquil at the moment. I continued to look at the beautiful village in front of me. Moments such as these always reminded me of my new life here. I would get this tingly sensation and realize that this was my new world, of course I wouldn't lose hope in returning home, but just knowing I was here changed my views completely. I was sad not to be home but at the same time happy to still be alive.

Getting to feel all these new experiences was amazing. Never would I have thought to come into a different dimension that was exactly like an anime/manga from my world; and I certainly didn't think it would reawaken the same emotions. I lifted my hands higher and looked up to the clouds.

I felt different yet similar here to how I used to be. It was all new to me with only some basic insight. I felt happy and energetic, strong, spirited. I felt _alive_.

Moving my hands back down, I looked back down to the village, engraving the image in my mind.

"I have decided...this is by far my most favorite place in the village." I said breaking the comfortable silence.

"I knew you would love it! But sorry Sakura-chan, I can't agree with you." Naruto said and I looked over to him along with Hiruzen.

"And why not?" I asked and watch him grin widely. He raised a fist in the air.

"Because the best place is Ichiraku Ramen!" He proclaimed confidently. We both chuckled at his open love for that particular ramen.

"We all know that's your favorite place Naruto-san." I informed the boy, who grinned and nodded once.

"What's yours Jiji?" He asked curiously. I looked over to Hiruzen and noticed his eyes on the village.

"Hmm, the whole village is my favorite place." He answered.

"No, you have to pick one place." Naruto informed.

"Then if it's one place...I'll have to agree with Sakura-chan on this one." He said with a smile to both of us.

"Nooo! It's Ichiraku ramen!" Naruto defended childishly. We chuckled at his actions and watched him pout with his hands crossed.

"I'll be leaving now, but I'll see both of you again sometime." He said as he patted both of our heads. We nodded and watched him head down the stairs.

"Wait a minute...You forgot to take me out to ramen!" He shouted at Hiruzen who was out of sight. I laughed and placed my hand on his shoulder.

"He's probably busy. We can go get ramen if you want to, my treat." I told him. His pout changed in to an uncertain look.

"I don't want you to keep paying for me..." He said quietly. I smiled and ruffled his hair.

"That's okay Naruto-san. I don't mind, really. Besides, if I want to buy you stuff, I'm going to buy them." I said with resolve.

"So do you want to?" I asked and watched him nod his head slowly. I smiled and nodded and watched his face get adorned with his happy smile. I jumped down the fourth's head and looked back up. The sun was too bright so I had to shield my eyes.

"Come on then." I encouraged and watched him nod and smile happily, with the sun shinning brightly behind him. It's sun casted its rays to outline his small body and darken him into a silhouette before my eyes. As I watched him climb down the boulder, I couldn't help compare him to the sun...metaphorically speaking.

When he smiled, his whole face just seemed to brighten up in happiness. Not to mention he was so...yellow.

"Naruto-san lets go shopping for cloths afterwards." I said and watched him tilt his head in confusion.

"Why?" He asked me and I sighed at his cluelessness.

"To buy some clothes silly. I'll buy you some and you can repay me by helping carry them and choose things." I told him. He looked surprised and shook his head.

"No, you don't have too!" He quickly said. I crossed my arms and used my slightly taller height to lean in towards him. The poor boy noticed my frown and shrunk into himself.

"What did you say?" I asked him calmly.

"Uhm...Let's do whatever you want to do Sakura-chan..." He answered and even smiled worriedly. I laughed at him and shook my head.

"Let's go eat." I said and walked towards the stairs with a smiling Naruto beside me.

We got half way down the stairs before Naruto started talking again.

"Ne, Sakura-chan. Can I ask you a question?" He asked as he looked down at the steps, being careful as to where he placed his foot.

"That was a question Naruto-san; but yes, I guess you can ask me another one." I said jokingly. I received an eye roll and an elbow to my arm. We chuckled and then I waited for his question.

"Why do you still call me Naruto-san? I call you Sakura-chan." He said and I tilted my head.

"Ah...well my mother is really big on etiquette; but how about I just drop the honorific and just call you just Naruto. I know we'll be closer friends in the future." I suggested. I was actually glad he mentioned it. I was glad he found our friendship that close already. He nodded and then smiled over to me shyly.

"Can I still call you Sakura-chan?" He asked as he scratched the back of his head. I smiled and nodded.

**"Awww! He's so cute!"** Inner squealed.

"If you want too. I don't mind." I said, ignoring Inner was the best thing to do when she got like that. He grinned and nodded, suddenly getting really hyper all of a sudden and started running down the stairs.

"Let's hurry Sakura-chan! I'm hungry!" He stated and my surprise vanished as I ran after him.

"Let's race then! I'll see you there Naruto!" I shouted as I ran passed him. He looked surprised for only a second before running faster. That little brat was holding back...probably because I'm a girl; but no matter, I wasn't planning on losing in the first place. He needs to learn now that girls here can be just as strong as boys.

**~Later On~**

It had been really funny seeing his face when I had won. I made it appear to him that he wasn't that much further behind me but that was because I had to hold back. It wasn't that hard to, not with the weights on my limbs. The weights had gotten so heavy that Inner and I agreed to raise the weight every week instead of every day. We were already far enough to get yelled at and probably grounded for placing so much weight on our tiny body that we didn't want to overstep our limit.

I looked over to the breathless boy who had his hands on his knees supporting himself. I smiled down to him. He might be like that now but I know he was happy. During the whole race through the village, not once did he stop smiling. We had passed through many villagers who shot him the usual scowl but he took no notice of them. His mind was completely focused on the race and of course his ramen.

We ordered our meal, and chatted amicably with Teuchi and Ayame. Naruto had told them about our race and wouldn't stop talking about it. Some of his words were unrecognizable due to the speed in which he was talking.

After I paid for our meal and left, I had to grab Naruto by the collar to make him follow me. Walking towards some shops that sold clothing, I couldn't help sense the presence lurking near by. It was most likely ANBU but I couldn't help find the source familiar. Could it be Kakashi? Is that what he was doing so early today?

**"He has his chakra well hidden, but it's definitely Kakashi."** Inner stated.

'I'm glad it's him. I'd rather he watch over Naruto since he knew about his father.' I thought as I concentrated back on the outside. I stopped when I noticed Naruto was not beside me. I turned around and found him.

"Naruto. You said you would follow me if I let go." I said with my arms crossed facing the back of his head.

"I'm not going anywhere Sakura-chan. You just have to see this! It's awesome!" He exclaimed happily and I raised an eyebrow. I dropped my arms and walked beside him to see what it was that had grabbed his attention. I stopped and blinked owlishly up at the display on the store window. Inner gasped dramatically and I looked over to Naruto's shining face.

"Do you want it?" I asked him. I got two completely different reactions at the same time. The more audible one was Inner's who shouted her disagreement; while Naruto's was more facial. He had turned towards me the moment he had processed my words. His face was pulling off an expression that had me debating whether it would win against Ino's ultimate weapon. His eyes sparkled with no concealment what-so-ever on how happy he was.

"Can I really get it?" He asked and I smiled and nodded.

"Do you want to go in with me or stay? I'm fine with what ever you pick." I stated and he shook his head.

"I'll wait here...I think it would make everything go faster if I just stay." He said but even the meaning behind it did nothing to make his eyes stop shinning. I nodded and walked inside the store. The bell at the top that almost every shop had, jingled when I opened it.

"Welcome! What can I do for you?!" A man said behind the counter. I smiled and pointed straight at the outfit that was being displayed on the window.

"I want that one." I said and watched his expression change.

'He's looking at me like I'm some weirdo.' I thought rather amusedly.

**"That's because you are! Why are you buying that ****_thing_**** for him?!"** Inner asked as she shook her head in disbelief.

"Because he wanted it and his orange outfit isn't that bad. That's like one of his signature things.' I answered her.

"Are you sure you want that one. It's a boy's outfit...and the color is a bit..." He didn't finish his sentence but I shook my head at what he implied.

"The color is fine and it's not for me. And why would you sell it if you don't like it? Didn't you order it?" I asked and waited for him to answer. He scratched his head sheepishly but walked over to the outfit.

"They made a mistake with the colors and so this happened...Are you sure you want this one for your friend? They're other colors to choose from." He said.

"No. This one is fine." I said and watched him shrug his shoulders as he grabbed the outfit and took it to the counter. I followed him and pulled my pink bag over. I opened the pocket that held the money Madoka had sent me. She always made sure I had money on me, but I always wondered what she thought I bought with all the money she gave me.

I walked out the store with the outfit in a bag once I paid for it. Naruto had jumped up in place when he saw me. I smiled and lifted the bag for him to see. He smiled brightly and I walked over to him. He had waited across the street for me and I noticed the looks he was getting from all the passerby. Ignoring them, I walked over to Naruto.

"I got it. Now let's go to the next one." I said and dragged him along handing him the bag. He opened it and grinned when he looked inside.

"But why do we need to go to more stores?" He asked as we walked the streets.

"Naruto...you can't just get that. We need to get you some shirts, shorts, pants, just a bunch more stuff." I explained and walked on.

The next store was further down this street. I had noticed it awhile back but never had time to check it out. From what I could tell, it was a ninja store. I opened the door and Naruto was behind me, hesitating on whether to go in or stay outside.

"Welcome!" I heard and looked to the right. My eyes widened when I looked up to see Kenshin, Tenten's father. He seemed to have recognized me also from the smile he was sending me.

"Hello Sakura-san." He greeted, and I bowed.

"Hello Kenshin-san. I forgot Tenten-san told me you guys had a store." I said and entered the store with Naruto behind me.

"Tenten's with her mother right now, you just missed her. She's actually been trying to find you." He informed as he looked at me and then smiled nicely at Naruto. I was glad they weren't from here and didn't know about Naruto. This way they could get to know him personally instead of with rumors.

"Hmm. Will you tell her I'll come by tomorrow around this time?" I asked. He nodded and walked over to help us find some clothes.

It was nice seeing Naruto look excitedly for his own clothes. He was a bit hesitant of Kenshin at first but soon felt a bit more at ease when I told him about him, his wife and Tenten moving here.

We left the store filled with bags. I had to actually help Naruto carry his bags because we had picked out more for him. When we made our way towards his apartment he had started thanking me over and over saying how he would repay me. I kept on telling him that it was okay and I wouldn't accept it because this was my gift to him as my friend. After our mini argument, that I had won, we had arrived.

I looked up to the huge three-story building that held a lot of apartments. It was a faded red color on the walls with brown roofing shingles with dull green at the bottom of each floor.

"My rooms at the very top." He informed as we enter the building. I followed along and looked around. In the entrance was a lobby sort of space, the stairs were at the front to the left; while to the right were two rooms. They took up most of the bottom floor which was bigger than the top two. They were doorless and had a red and blue cloth that had female and male characters on it, obviously it had to be the bathrooms.

We crossed the space and made our way towards the stairs. Everything was pretty plain and looked the same. When we reached the top of the first stairs we crossed the long hallway that had rooms all along the right side. At the end of the hallway we went up the last set of stairs. Once at the very top, on my left there was a balcony and on my right were more rooms. Naruto led me to the middle of the hallway and stopped in front of the fifth door. He unlocked it and opened the door. I was actually preparing to see a very messy room, but was pleasantly surprised to see it was somewhat normal, just like any other boy's room. It certainly looked like my brother's room when they got lazy.

"Come on in Sakura-chan!" He invited and I nodded following him inside. I closed the door behind me and followed him deeper into his room. The room itself was a decent size for a child but it was very empty and plain. His door had been a bright mahogany red while his floors where a darker mahogany color. It had brown borders at the bottom of his walls and the rest was a dull light green color. He had a single ceiling light that was blue. I watched Naruto place the bags he had on his unmade bed that had a messy yellow comforter with swirls on it. Besides that he only had a drawer he used to put his clothes in and used it as a nightstand. His alarm clock was on top of it.

I walked over to him and handed him the bags that were his. While he was talking them out, I noticed the refrigerator on the other side, as well as a full size mirror and another drawer. There was also a table with books on top next to the fridge, and besides that only some trash was here and there. I turned my head to the left and looked outside the window that was beside his bed. He had a pretty good view of the village from here.

"Hey...Sakura-chan!" I shook my head and turned over to the shouting boy.

"Sorry Naruto. I was think about how good the view of the village is from here." I told him.

"Yeah, if you think this is a good view. You'll like the view on the roof!" He said cheerfully.

"Ne Naruto, How about I help you decorate this place! We could put up some cool posters or pictures!" I suggested. I had planned to make him happy this time and I was sure things would turn out better.

"That would be awesome! But you've already spent so much on me today..." He said turning sad again.

"No Naruto! We agreed that if either wanted to get something for the other we could. And it's not like we're buying them today. We can take our time." I explained and watched as he smiled and nodded.

"Hey before I leave, how about I help you with that homework!...You did work on it, right?" I asked him, while giving him a suspicious look. He nodded quickly and ran over to his table. He grabbed the book that was filled with papers and placed it on the bed.

"See! I've been doing my work...Well Jiji helped a little." He said as he opened the book. I looked through all the papers and was impressed he had practiced so much. His writing needed improvement, for I could barely read any of the characters. But it was the effort he put in that made me smile at him.

"This is great Naruto! Do you remember them?" I asked. That was the whole point of learning them. He nodded enthusiastically and I nodded and patted his head.

"Good. Are you done with this book?" I asked.

"Yeah! I finished it two days ago. I've been practicing them ever since." He said and I smiled.

"Alright. How about I bring you some more supplies and books tomorrow before I meet Tenten?" I asked and he nodded less hesitant than before.

For the next hour we spent the time sitting on his bed and studying up on the characters he's learned. Naruto wasn't lying when he said he had remembered them. I had tested him with different ways and he still got them right. I was very proud of him. Leaving was a bit hard. Naruto always had a sad expression on his face but each time I reminded him of my return and he wouldn't be so sad anymore.

As I left and walked the streets, I felt the ANBU presence stay behind at Naruto's apartment.

I arrived home right when the sun was beginning to set. Both Madoka and Kioshi were home so we all ate dinner together. We talked about our day and I told them all about my two days away. I even told them about Naruto, leaving out some certain things. I had asked if I could take some studying materials over to him tomorrow as I explained I was teaching him. They agreed and were happy that I was helping my friend. They had even asked me about him, simple questions; but I knew they were starting to get accustomed to my mystery friend. It wouldn't take long now before my fourth birthday arrived and I would introduce them.

**"Do you think they'll accept him?"** Inner asked as we got ready for bed.

"I hope so. They're compassionate so I'm sure they'll understand...right? They wont hate their daughters friend would they?" I wondered as I climbed in bed. Inner didn't answer me and I didn't like the doubt that crept into me.

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**Did you guys like it? Next chapter will have a mini time skip towards her birthday and the meeting between her parents and Naruto! Hopefully you enjoyed and continue to read and review.**


	26. Chapter 26

**Authors Note:** Thanks you guys for all the support! I reached 1.02k views on Tuesday! I really appreciate that so many of you have stayed this long. I will continue to do by best with this story. I think around three more chapters will be posted before getting into the beginning of the anime/manga. Remember not everything will be the same. One more thing before you start reading. I feel like I have to explain the reason why Sakura/Kazumi go into a mental breakdown in this chapter.

I don't know about you guys but if I was thrown into a different dimension, I would probably freak at first, later after getting used to the idea, the pressure would start to bottle up inside, for whatever reason. One has to eventually let all those negative feelings out, so either you confide in someone or pay the consequences for it later.

Kazumi is a very considerate character so she would rather keep things to herself, feeling that it wouldn't be too important to others. In this chapter everything will just crash down onto her, all her locked up insecurities and stressful anxiety will come out and she will be unable to cope with all the things piling up. Hopefully this helps explain why she suddenly becomes unable to cope with the situation.

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

** Overload**

** Sakura's POV**

**~February~**

Things where hectic the first week of February. First the clan meeting, then telling the Hokage about our ability. There were other occurrences but they weren't as stressful. I had met up with Tenten as promised. We had played and practiced on our kunai throwing. Getting to know Tenten was a nice experience. She was funny and very nice to people. I had talked to her about Naruto, she had stated that she didn't know him but would like to meet him. I told her that people were mean to him and that she shouldn't believe their lies. She vigorously stated that she would not judge him or anyone else like that. I was very glad, after that I had taken her to get some food. We ate at a dango shop, the same one I had eaten with Naruto. Before leaving her, I told her that I would soon introduce her to Naruto.

I met up with Naruto on the same day. I had went over to his apartment to drop off the supplies I had promised. He was shocked that I was giving him my books. I hadn't really read them because I had known them already. I assured him it was fine, better than buying more unnecessarily. So after I had dumped practically all the contents in my pink bag at his apartment, we left to play. We played for the whole day and I had told him that pretty soon he was going to meet my friend. I told him she was the daughter of the guy he met in the ninja store we had gone into. Which speaking of him, made me realize that he hadn't worn his new clothes. He said he wanted to wear them in special occasions and not get them ripped and dirty while playing. So after a whole day of fun we parted ways.

The rest of the week was boring. All I did was train and train and train. Because of all the things I had done earlier in the week, I had not trained at all and going back into the routine bored me. It was fine when Chouko or Kioshi were there but when I practiced alone, it got boring fast. The only good thing about that was of my progress. I could now release chakra out of 257 tenketsu points. Also, I had time to read Haruki's letters. He seemed to be fine, just lonely. He told me of his days and anything interesting he wanted to talk about. I enjoyed reading his letters and began to write some of my own.

On Saturday I had went over to the Uchiha compound. Shisui and Mikoto were as cheerful as always. Itachi was his polite nice self and Sasuke...oh that poor child. It was painfully obvious that he was becoming accustomed to me, but still fighting off the idea. I had taken Sora with me and allowed Sasuke to pretty much hog him all to himself. When he did leave Sora for awhile, that was to train and eat. We had actually gotten a lot of training in. We practiced with kunai first then shuriken.

Sasuke could now hit four out of five targets, not the bulls-eye but still close. I had practice throwing kunai a lot in my spare time. So now I could hit all the targets but only two bulls-eye. Throwing the shuriken was again hard for me. I had used Tenten's stance she taught me, and it had fared better than all the other stances. After practice we had lunch together. I was informed that Fugaku had a meeting so he wouldn't be joining us. After dinner was actually quite nice. A very friendship bonding moment. We spent the rest of the day looking for cats...more specifically their paw prints. I had actually giggled when they had suggested the game...or "challange" as they said. When I had realized they were being serious I had stopped giggling and turned serious, but not without letting out some chuckles every so often.

The whole...challange was actually very good to use for aspiring ninja's. It had merit, just like the game ninja. With the game ninja you had to hide your self just like a shinobi hides from their enemies; while the seeker tracks them down with their senses and knowledge, using whatever creative means to capture them. They even had toy weapons to use.

With this cat challenge, it tested ones speed in capturing the cat along with endurance. It also involved their tracking skills, as well as their capturing method. The games had other valuable hidden teachings one just needed to know how to implement in a fun game to guide a child to learn and use them.

Mikoto had helped put us in pairs so we could split up and find cats, get their paw prints and then return. Whoever had the most won. This even helped with team bonding ideas...actually maybe that's why they always had that D-ranked mission to find Tora...It made sense.

The pairs had been Sasuke and Shisui while I was paired up with Itachi. I wasn't so surprised when Itachi had given me a wireless radio. Never having used one, and not knowing what to do, besides put it on, Itachi helped set it up for me. While he adjusted the frequency of the radio to be the same as his. I couldn't help look at his mother...I mean, the woman had this far away look in her eyes as she intertwined her fingers and held them to her chest. The look she had confused me greatly...it was the same look a little girl would get from listening to fairy tales...before I could question her actions further in my head, Itachi had finished and stepped back from adjusting it on my neck. After we had tested it out we went into the village.

While we walked the streets, I saw him receive love stricken gazes from multiple girls. I felt uncomfortable just standing near him in those moments, especially when the girls would then glare daggers at me. Although he was a very quiet guy we still conversed amicably and about many things like our views on the things around us. We found out that day that not only did we share the same view on family but food as well. We both enjoyed eating dango, after knowing that, I had suggested we eat it some day. He had agreed and we continued on, even our silence had not been uncomfortable.

Our first cat had been easy to trap. We had split up and cornered the poor thing. Blocking its exits with well timed appearances. I had caught him and Itachi had done the printing. That's how we spent our afternoon, looking for cats. The chase had actually been fun, and I preferred this type of speed game as opposed to seeking without chakra. Out teams would cross sometimes and the other two would gloat on their catches not knowing we always had more. As the game advanced, Itachi and I found each other getting accustomed to the way we worked in a team that the following cats would end up in some sort of new ingenious trap every time.

When we had called it quits, we returned to the compound. Our team winning by four more paw prints. Their reaction was predictable, a loud childish outburst from both of them. Shisui proposed that our team pick were to eat-out next time we got together and Itachi's and my response was immediate and exact, dango. We then bid goodbye and agreed to meet again when they had free time.

Before going home, however, I dragged Naruto over to the Hokage tower for a quick happy birthday to Hiruzen. He was confused as to how I had known it was his birthday on February eighth. I only answered his question by saying that I liked to read a lot. When we had gotten into the office...Naruto practically shouted it while I just spoke calm and respectfully. He was surprised until he looked at me and smiled, remembering my ability. We spent some time together, chatting and drinking tea. I told him that I would get him a cake later, since this was a quick visit. He had gratefully accepted and we continued to have a good time.

The next day had gone back to boring training on my own and nothing interesting happened. Hiruzen had been in a meeting so I couldn't personally deliver the cake. So I left it to Aya who was still there on her shift. She gratefully complied with my request and I left to train some more

**~Second and Third Week~**

The second week went by fast as did the third. Most of the time I had spent alone or with Madoka, Kioshi, and Chouko. I trained hard on my endurance those weeks, having nothing else to do but practice. My endurance was finally getting better...Stamina, however, was not.

The third week did have something great happen. Naruto had met Tenten and both of their outgoing personality clicked immediately. They befriended each other quickly and I was very happy. That day we didn't practice but played all day. We played a variety of games, even some games that Tenten knew of from her old village. The best part was when we introduced Tenten to Ichiraku ramen. She immediately liked it and I knew Ichiraku's had another loyal customer. Other than that day, every other day went normal. I only met up with Ino once each week. We played and talked about flowers, but that was the usual. Well besides me asking her to explain to me why she's so good at acting.

I also couldn't go to the Uchiha's because Itachi and Shisui had both gone to a mission. Nothing too big but pretty long, well, that's what I was told from Mikoto when she went by the bakery. The only other thing that was exciting was finishing my Lightning dance. Chouko was proud but still wanted me to practice them until they felt natural to me.

**~Fourth Week~ **

The last week of February wasn't as good as the others. I did focus on my shuriken throwing and stamina. I had Kioshi help me with both. I wasn't completely bad in the stamina department, it just wouldn't be enough for events in the future. During chakra practice one day, Inner had brought up a certain conversation that I had to address honestly. She had mentioned that our chakra reserves where growing rather slowly, even though our control over it was really good. I had informed her what I thought about it honestly. I told her that everyone's chakra grew differently and that I knew, we would always have average if not a little above average reserves. We could never be natural chakra power houses like Naruto or Sasuke or some other people. And I was fine with that, as long as we had enough to protect our loved ones, that was enough. And we didn't really have to worry, our control was good enough to not waste the chakra we have and last just as long as the others. There was actually another reason why we didn't need big natural chakra reserves. I told her we had our weights that stored our chakra for when we needed it. Right now all the chakra within those weights equalled our reserve. Plus when we study under Tsunade we would most certainly learn the byakugō, so there really wasn't any hurry to expand our reserves. They could expand on their own slow pace.

During the weeks of February I had constantly told Madoka and Kioshi about Naruto. Of course they were still clueless and curious but I told him he was shy. They seemed to respect that and just asked simpler questions.

I had also went to the library to get more books to study. I got some on the basics of medics such as, first aid, the human body, and books on herbs. All these would keep me busy until I had them memorized.

** ~March~**

The first week of march started off great. Naruto and I went over to Tenten's store with a big cake carried by the two of us. I had told Naruto a day before and we spent all day in his apartment sketching designs for a cake. I had told Kenshi and Akiko if we could, and they both had agreed. They both secretly told me her favorite flavors and pastries. So after deciding on a sketch we both liked, I had given it to Madoka, who would be making the cake. I helped make it and was happy with the results.

So after getting ready in a cute dress, I made my way down the streets with a big cake box in my hands and scrolls in my pink bag filled with other stuff. Naruto had met me halfway and I was glad he wore his new clothes. Inner had been thankful he hadn't worn the orange jumpsuit we got him.

He had noticed the size of the cake and offered to help. So we then made our way to the store which was a two story, with their living space as the top part. When we arrived, Kenshi greeted us and ushered us up. When the door was opened by Tenten herself, she looked surprised and happy. Naruto and I had shouted happy birthdays to her and watched her face light up with joy. She too wore a cute dress and had her hair down. It was a bit shorter length than mine and hers was wavy.

We spent the whole day together and had a lot of fun eating, talking, and playing games.

** ~Second Week~**

There was only one week after this one for my birthday. I had gotten really anxious. On Tenten's birthday before I had left, I told Tenten and her parents that they should come over to my party. It would also be the day my parents met Naruto. They had agreed to come, Tenten agreed in a very excited manner. She had stated that she would bring a present just like I had for her. One of the scrolls contained my present to her. At first I was at a loss for what to get her, since she already had a lot of weapons. So having planned this two weeks before the party, I had sent Haruki my letters along with a request. The gift I had decided on was a beautiful blue kimono from Water. It was a Chinese style kimono and was made of silk. I was glad she had liked it. Naruto as well had surprised us by showing her a bracelet he had made for her. It was cute and simple and was very thoughtful of Naruto to make it. After Naruto had left, I was about to leave, having seen Tenten go up to get ready for bed. I was stopped by Kenshin who had looked very serious. We talked and he had explained to me how he had over heard some villagers speak badly of Naruto as he walked the streets. I had told him it was a lie and that Naruto was a really good kid, he smiled gently down at me and patted my head reassuringly. He told me that he had not believed in what they had said because he knew how Naruto really was. I was very happy that day as I walked back home.

I was actually very busy the whole week. From training hard in the morning, to getting ready for the party. I invited Ino and her family over on that week. She had been even more excited than me, stating how she would get me _the_ best present.

I also went around inviting Chouko and Marianne and Yashiro to the party. They had all agreed and now it was mostly waiting. Madoka and Kioshi had surprised me the night before my birth week arrived. They had asked me where I had wanted to go after leaving Haruki's place that we were going to visit. I had asked them why we were going on another trip right after the last one. They had just sent me sad smiles stating that they wanted to travel with me right now that I was young. They said that later as a ninja, I would be too busy.

For their sake and because of their logical reason, I had agreed without complaint. I chose to go to Suna after leaving Haruki's place. They had agreed and liked the idea of me visiting my foreign friends. Hopefully I _could_ actually meet them.

**~Third Week~**

I was extremely nervous. I was clumsy the whole beginning of the week and I wasn't sleeping well. Inner helped me calm down most of the time, stating that everything would go okay. I always ended up believing her only to go back into a nervous mess. As the days went by, I tried to calm myself. I focused on meditation most of the time, to help settle down my nervous. I had even walked around the village by myself to clear my thoughts and going up to the mountain did wonders to ease my worries. On the night before, I couldn't go to sleep very well but at least I wasn't so nervous. I had decided that if they were to not accept Naruto, I would just change their opinion and I would be extremely over joyed if they accepted him. I fell asleep that night very late but clear of doubt.

**~Birthday~**

I awoke completely refreshed and ready to tackle on anything.

**"Happy Birthday to us!"** Inner shouted excitedly. I felt her popping confetti and had a party hat on. How she was doing that confused me just as much as me seeing her doing it.

"Yeah, happy birthday to us." I said while smiling. The first few days of nervousness went to the farthest recesses of my mind. I hopped out of bed and tidied up before gathering my picked out clothes from last night and went to take a shower.

**~After Shower~**

The shower was very refreshing and helped me completely wake up. I smiled and looked at the mirror in front of me. My pink hair was brushed out and my long bangs braided to the right side. My dress was almost the same shade of pink as that of my hair. There was white sakura's with many petals on the dress and some cute white sandals. After finishing up, I hurried down stairs to the others.

"Happy Birthday!" They shouted simultaneously. They had scooped me off the floor and hugged me between each other. Breakfast was very good. There was just this happy aura around all of us that just made the whole house light up with our happiness.

The whole morning was spent putting finishing touches on the house for the party. We didn't have much to do because we had started since yesterday. We made the house colorful and festive. There were balloons, streamers, drinks, food, pastries, and much more. When it was two o'clock, I had left to retrieve Naruto. They had stated that Chouko, Marianne and Yashiro should be here by the time I got back, since they live near by. I then stepped out of my house and started walking towards Naruto's apartment.

"**I'm so excited! I can't wait for them to meet! Outer hurry up!"** Inner shouted.

'Well I could but I don't want to.' I said and chuckled as I felt her frown and jump and thrash around in frustration. After her incessant commands to hurry up had increased in volume, I had jogged the remainder of the way there. Once I arrived, I hurried up the stairs as well as the hallways until I was standing in front of his mahogany door. I stayed outside for a few minutes to catch my breath and fix my clothes and hair. Once done, I knocked on his door.

"Coming Sakura-chan! I'm almost done!" Naruto informed from the other side of the door. I sighed but smiled at his silliness. He had probably started late to get ready. I waited outside for him to finish. I leaned on the wall beside his door with my left shoulder and intertwined my fingers behind my back. It took him three minutes before coming out. I pushed off the wall and let go of my fingers.

"Ready to go?" I asked him as I noticed him nod and smile. He wore an outfit that we had chosen together and a shirt he had gotten from Hiruzen. It was a black shirt with an orange swirl in the middle. He wore the dark grey shorts he had chosen and the dark grey jacket with orange trimmings that I had matched for him. He looked a lot like his father did when he was young when he wore jackets.

**"At least it's not all orange..."** Inner said approvingly as she looked at his outfit.

"I'm ready! Ne Sakura-chan you look really pretty!" He complemented with a smile. I smiled and thanked him also returning the complement...besides the pretty part. We began our walk back down and towards my home. Before we had reached the outside of the building, I had told him we could slowly make our way back, since no one was really there yet. He seemed to agree as we walked outside. Was it my suddenly nervous aura that was spreading to him? I didn't want him to feel nervous...but then, I couldn't stop either. Every step made my heart beat faster and I started to get butterflies along the way.

'Inner,everything will go alright...right? Nothing bad will happen...He'll be accepted, I just know it.' I tried to think optimistically. When we had made it half way, my feet felt heavier. At one point I had to stop to calm myself. How could I get so nervous? Everything would go fine. We'll walk in and have a great time together...I hopped that's how it went.

We reached my street and walked equally nervous. I bit my cheek as I stopped in front of my house.

"Well...this is my home." I informed Naruto, who looked around trying to seem normal, but I could see it in his eyes. That scared, nervous feeling he had when he first met me and didn't trust me. I grabbed his hand in mine. He looked over to me surprised but I just gave him a smile, albeit a little shaky; but just for him to know that I was here.

_'Thank you.'_ Was his thought and I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath. The warmth his small hand transferred to me helped me find my resolve.

Letting the breath out, I confidently made my way towards the door. As I walked, I felt Inner stay quiet and felt her fingers intertwine and held to her chest in a nervous/hopeful manner. Before arriving, I felt five chakra's inside, knowing them to be Madoka, Kioshi, Chouko, Marianne, and Yashiro. I gulped and tightened my hand on Naruto's hand before pushing open the door.

"I'm back and my friends here!" I exclaimed excitedly...But from there...time seemed to slow down for the worse.

Everything stopped, from the conversation prior to my entrance, to the loud sound of my heart beat. I watched as their cheerful expressions vanished slowly as they looked at who was in front of them. Their expressions morphed into that of confusion and shock. My heart clenched painfully and I had found myself wanting to voice out my reasoning, my opinion of Naruto and not that of the mean villagers...but I couldn't. My voice was lost to me as I took in the emotions swirling in their eyes. Silence overtook us for a long time until I couldn't contain my emotions any longer.

"...Why?..." I whispered but no one answered.

_'...They hate me too...and they'll make Sakura-chan hate me...'_ I looked over to Naruto and noticed his eyes brimming with hurt-filled tears. I trembled and looked over to the others. Madoka and Kioshi stayed uncertain and shocked. Chouko seemed lost for what to do...and as for the other two. They did nothing to hide their distrust, and the meaning behind those looks...shattered something within me.

For the first time in a long...long time...I cried.

I wasn't sure exactly why I cried...there were to many plausible reasons in that single moment. I knew sooner or later this young body would breakdown from all the stress I was shouldering alone.

My hand which had tightened around Naruto's was shaking along with rest of me. My silent inconceivable tears that racked my body turned into sorrow filled wails as I poured out my pent up emotions...Inner had warned me about this; but I had disregarded her advice. My turbulent emotions must have caused Inner to loose control for my mind was overloading with thoughts and memories of Naruto; and of Sakura before I had become her. This had only causing me to cry louder from Naruto's insecure thoughts of me leaving him because of my parents...just like all the others.

I cried for him...I cried because of all the negative emotions I had held back...but most of all...I cried because I felt betrayed.

Them...who I had thought were different, who I had thought would understand, had looked upon Naruto like he was some sort of monster. They were judging him unfairly when they had never even began to try to understand him.

In the logical corner of my mind, I wondered why I didn't stop crying and tell them, persuade them to understand...but I was too hurt and too tierd of holding everything back. I was burdened with this task whether by choice or not...I would have still had to face hardships trying to get back home whether I had decided to change the plot or not.

**Normal POV**

As Sakura's wails continued to ring throughout the room, the adults could not seem to function correctly. They had only just been conversing in a friendly topic moments ago, when they were introduced to the pariah of the village as a friend of Sakura's.

They were uncertain of what to do in such a situation that they could not answer Sakura's question. They were even more at a loss for what to do when Sakura had broken down in front of them. Before they had a chance to speak even once, Sakura quickly turned and ran out the open door, while pulling a worried and hurt-filled Naruto along. She paid no mind to anyone else or where she was going, she hadn't even noticed Sora fly beside her worriedly catching up to her.

"Sakura-chan?" Tenten asked as she watched her friend run out of the house they were just moments from entering. She worriedly hugged the wrapped present in her hands as she watched her run away.

"...She was crying..." She whispered worriedly up to her equally worried parents. They had heard her sobs and noticed the tears streaming down her face as she passed by them.

Sakura blindly ran through the streets, ignoring all the looks and shouts from villagers who they bumped into. Sakura wiped away tears to get rid of the blurry vision, but her tears kept pouring down relentlessly.

"Sakura-chan! Wait! We're running too fast! " Naruto shouted from behind Sakura who kept their hands connected. He kept on tripping but Sakura's hand and speed didn't let him fall, only to keep running.

_'Sakura-chan...you're crying because of me...'_ Naruto thought as a few tears fell from his own eyes.

_'...I don't want to be alone again but if you get hurt because of me-'_ Naruto's last insecure thought was cut short when his arm was suddenly jerked forward, causing him to fall on his knees and let go of Sakura's hand to stop his fall. A thud was hear on their contact.

"Sakura?..." A confused voice asked to his right. It was followed by a loud feminine gasp. He looked over and noticed a boy around his age holding a present, with small evidence of a frown still on his face slowly being replaced with shock. The woman appeared to be his mother and the last quiet one his brother, all looking confused. Not knowing who they were, he ignored them in favor of turning back. His eyes widened when he saw Sakura had fallen forward and presumably fell unconscious. Now his tears were rapidly falling as he crawled over beside her.

"...Sakura-chan?...Sakura-chan?!" Naruto chanted over and over, trying to make his unconscious friend wake up.

While Naruto was beside her attempting to wake her, Itachi had snapped out of the surprise first and quickly made his way to her other side. He startled Naruto when he began to gently turn her over onto her back. He checked her pulse and found it slowing back down from its rapid beating from earlier. He looked up to Mikoto, who nodded.

"Go. We'll catch up." She said and watched him pick Sakura up and jump towards the roofs for a faster route to the hospital.

"Come on, lets go to the hospital." She stated to her son who had stayed relatively quiet and to Naruto who sniffled and cleared his tears.

**~A few Minutes Later~**

Itachi arrived quickly and grabbed the attention of the nearest nurse he could find. They quickly grabbed Sakura from his arms and placed her on a rolling stretcher. They started hurrying towards a room while they heard all that Itachi could tell them. When they entered a room, the nurses had asked for him to wait in the hallway. He complied and soon his family and Naruto joined him in waiting.

Inside the room the nurses were checking Sakura's vitals and connected the heart monitors to her. After a while of checking up on her, Sakura had woken up. She asked for Naruto to be inside with her, seeing that she would be fine for the moment, the nurses stepped out. The nurse Itachi had found was the only one to stay back to be by Sakura's side.

"How is she?" Mikoto asked worriedly.

"Fine for now. She asked for a Naruto Uzumaki to enter, but only him." The nurse informed. Naruto stood and walked over to the room, but before he could enter the nurse had request for him not to tire her out. He entered when he nodded and the door was closed behind him.

"Nurse could you tell me what was wrong with Sakura-chan?" Mikoto asked. The nurse nodded and looked down at her clipboard.

"The patient, Sakura-san had experienced a nervous breakdown, small enough for her to still be able to function in day-to-day life. Our tests on her resulted with her having to many stressors to temporarily cause her to be overwhelmed." The nurse informed the group.

"Do you know what was stressing her?" Mikoto asked. the nurse nodded and looked back down.

"There was actually quiet a few for someone so young. I was surprised she wasn't in here sooner. The readings on the test suggested she had been sleep deprived for quiet some time, stress in area's such as overworking the body and anxiety for reasons only she would know and had not disclosed." The nurse stated. Mikoto nodded her head and sat back down with her children.

"You are not her guardian correct?" The nurse asked. Mikoto nodded and the nurse left informing them she would get someone to contact Sakura's parents.

"Oh Sakura-chan...I hope she's okay..." Mikoto whispered as they waited their turn.

**Sakura's POV**

I hadn't actually expected to faint from the stress, but then there was never a week without something to worry about. It seems like once I finished one mentally exhausting task, another one was ready for me. Fainting this time must have been from the overload in my mind, like the last time I had fainted. I felt weak laying in this hospital bed...everything was too white and the beeping of the heart monitor did nothing to ease my headache. I turned my head when I heard the door open. Naruto walked in with his head down casted. He looked up and just stared at me sadly, I sent him a reassuring smile but was too tired to keep it on.

"Come closer Naruto." I said as I watched him hesitantly walk up to me. I smiled and had planned on handing him my hand when I decided against it and patted his head. I wouldn't want to hear more thoughts and faint again so soon.

"I'm sorry!" He suddenly said and lowered his head away from my view.

"It wasn't your fault Naruto...I've been stressing for as long as I can remember so it wasn't your fault. I have a friend that had warned me but I hadn't listened, so it's my fault. " I explained and watched as his shoulders trembled.

"...But because of me...your parent's wont let you be near me...So it's better if I just stay away..." He said in between sniffles. I looked down at him sadly.

"No. Your my friend and my parents...well, we'll just have to try again to convince them okay?" I asked and watched him lift his head and look at me sadly. Tears flowed down his eyes and didn't seem to be stopping any time soon.

"...I...I was so scared when you fell...I didn't know what to do..." He said and rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand. I shook my head and reached for a tissue on the nightstand near the bed. I whipped his face to get his attention and handed him the tissue so he could finish once he opened his eyes.

"I'm okay now Naruto, just tired." He looked at me in disbelief but said nothing. I patted his head again but sent him a more reassuring smile than the last.

**Normal POV**

Outside of the room, more people had joined the Uchiha's. It was quiet only for the explanation of the nurse to the newcomers. The group consisted of Sakura's parents along with Tenten and her family. After a while the Hokage had arrived accompanied by Ino and her family as well as Shikamaru and Choji. The Hokage had explained to them that he had been walking the streets when he had met up with Inoichi and them heading to the party. Wanting to congratulate Sakura, he had tagged along. When they had arrived they noticed no one there, so he checked for Sakura's chakra and found her in the hospital. They had then hurried over.

"Can I go in and see her?" Ino asked as she ran up to the nurse. She shook her head down at the worried girl.

"I'm sorry but she said she wanted to speak with Naruto alone." The nurse replied. Ino held her hands together tightly and looked worriedly onto the floor. Tenten continued to hug the present to her chest as she witnessed the interaction. She had wanted to go in to see Sakura as well but was told the same from the nurse, and looking at the looks of the first one's here, they hadn't seen her either.

"I'll be going in to see how things are. I'm sure Sakura-chan wont mind." The Hokage spoke up as he walked to the doors.

"Hokage-sama...hurry back so I can see her too." Ino said and watched the Hokage smile and pat her head reassuringly.

**Sakura's POV**

I looked up to the door and saw Hiruzen walk in. I waved up to him weakly.

"Hey." I said and watched him look over me.

"Are you feeling better? The nurse had filled me in to your state of being here." He said and I nodded.

"I just feel a little tired is all." I said and watched him frown.

"Sakura-chan is it because of..." He said and I looked down, knowing he meant my ability.

"It's partly responsible." I said truthfully.

"Sakura-chan make sure you don't recklessly use it." He stated with a serious yet soft tone. I nodded up to him and noticed that Naruto was confused by our conversation.

"Hokage-sama, can you let in my parents. If their out there." I said and he nodded walking over to the door. I waited for a few second and watched as Madoka and Kioshi walked in. They stopped near the doorway and looked over me sadly. Madoka was the first to move. She burst into guilty tears and moved to my side, opposite of Naruto who was on my left. She cried and said she was sorry. Kioshi had also walked up to me and hugged me, while also apologizing.

"Thank you but it's not me you should be apologizing to." I said and watched them pull back in realization. They stepped back and bowed towards Naruto. This action had surprised me but I was glad what it signified.

"We are so sorry. We shouldn't have allowed those rumours to cloud our judgement. We should have believed in what Sakura had told us of you. Please forgive us." Kioshi said and stood back up with Madoka when he had uttered a soft "I forgive you."

"Let's start over!" Madoka had suddenly spoken, surprising Naruto and me.

"The nurse said Sakura would be free to go in three hours, after they check up on her. Please bring her home where we will have her birthday party and meet you for the first time." Madoka had suggested. I smiled and blinked back tears of happiness. I nodded over to Naruto who looked like me if not closer to tears. He agreed and the Hokage who was smiling went over to the door. I watched as he spoke to the others and quickly moved out of the way when Ino ran inside followed closely behind by Tenten. The adults and other children walked in slower but just as relieved.

**Normal POV**

"Sakura-chan! I was so worried!" Ino shouted and Sakura smiled down at her worried face. Ino's eyes were shinning from unshed tears.

"I'm okay Ino-chan." Sakura told Ino calmly. Ino shook her head in disbelief.

"Okay?! You're not okay! Look at yourself!" Ino shouted, referring to her worn out appearance. Sakura smiled, hoping it was reassuring but it just came out looking like a tiered smile. Her eyes were slightly red from all the tears she had shed and her hair that had been neat was slightly tousled. She was wearing a hospital gown and a white sheet covered her but they could still see the outline of her small body and the monitor wires going inside to her chest. She looked anything but okay. Sakura chuckled softly and patted Ino's head.

"You either have a mirror on you or you expect me to magically come out of my own body and look at myself?" She teased trying to calm Ino down. Ino frowned and grabbed ahold of Sakura's left wrist.

"Don't joke Sakura-chan! This is serious!" Ino stated.

'How could she not be worried? She had fainted due to a nervous breakdown!' Ino thought in her head blinking back tears.

"Sorry this happened right before the party guys." Sakura said and rubbed the back of her head with her free one.

"You should be more worried about yourself." Sasuke said. Although he said it without making eye contact, Sakura could tell she had shocked him too.

"Wait...how did some of you even know I was in the hospital?" Sakura asked as she looked down at Ino.

"Well...Shikamaru and Choji had met with us on our way to your house. I told them about it and since they wanted to say happy birthday they came with us. Hokage-sama had also been walking and we bumped into each other. He tagged along too when he found out. When we arrived, nobody was there, so Hokage-sama searched for your chakra; and that's pretty much it." Ino explained. Sakura's viridian tired eyes looked over to Tenten.

"...We saw you run out of your house...and we came when your parents were told..." Tenten whispered and looked up sadly.

"I'm glad your okay Sakura-chan." Tenten said, finally loosening up her hold on the present. Sakura nodded and smiled at Tenten. Sakura then looked over to Sasuke.

"So how did you guys end up knowing?" Sakura asked as she looked between the three Uchiha's.

"We were actually the first one's here. We were on our way to your house...Madoka-chan had informed me that it was your birthday the day before. So, we were on our way to congratulate you...but on our way there. You ran across us and fainted in our path, Itachi had immediately carried you here." Mikoto explained and Sakura nodded then looked at Itachi. She bowed very slightly.

"Thank you." She said and Itachi nodded. When the explanations were done. Madoka had stated that Sakura would be out in two hours. So the party was postponed for her return, the adults had walked out after wishing her a quick recovery, in and out of the hospital. The kids stayed back to speak their own words.

"Sakura-chan, I'll see you soon! And if you_ ever_ scare me like that again...Well just hope you don't!" Ino shouted before running out. Sakura chuckled at her childishness.

"You can be so troublesome Sakura, just like Ino." Shikamaru stated, which was returned by a smile.

"Hope you get better Sakura-chan." Choji stated sincerely. Sakura nodded and happily noticed the change in honorifics.

"Make sure you rest good so we can play." Tenten said and Sakura nodded giving each other a hug before Tenten stepped out. The last one's to leave where the first one's here.

"Sakura-san, the nurse told us about the causes to your fatigue. Saturday we wont practice, instead we'll take things slow so you can recover." Itachi informed Sakura who complied.

"We'll have to slow things down for you...but I guess we can wait..." Sasuke had begun rudely and ended with a nicer tone. Sakura thanked them and watched them leave. When they had all left and only Naruto and her remained, she slept and rested her mind from all the pressure. Naruto stayed beside her as she slept and silently promised never to let Sakura get hurt enough to be on a hospital bed again.

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**Wow longest chapter so far! Hope you guys liked it. Next three chapters will be time skips. Hinata's birthday and kidnapping will be the main next event. So like always, review if you liked it! Thanks for all the reviews!**


	27. Chapter 27

**Authors Note:** Hey guys this chapter is a time skip towards Hinata's birthday. Her birthday will not be until the next chapter. Hope you like it and continue to read and review!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Finally Friends**

**Sakura's POV**

**~March~**

After I was discharged from the hospital, Naruto and I made our way back home. Although I didn't look as good as I had before, my happy feelings made up for it. On our way out Sora had perched on my shoulder. He rubbed his head against mine in worry, I apologized and Naruto had carried him the rest of the way. He was really happy and I was surprised that I hadn't remembered to introduce them earlier.

When we arrived, we pushed passed the door and multiple shouts were heard. I smiled up to them brightly feeling overjoyed. Hugs went around and then everyone ate. I introduced Naruto to everyone, thankful that Madoka and Kioshi had finally accepted him. And even though I had told him to play with the others, he still stayed with me most of the time, or with Tenten.

The rest of the day went by great. We played and talked and just enjoyed everyone's company. Chouko had surprised me when she had arrived and asked for Naruto and my presence outside to talk. Expecting her to break off our friendship, I was surprised when she bowed and apologized. It seems her love for children and our friendship overpowered the rumors that she had heard. She had heard of my collapse and had felt like she was partially responsible. Once everything was forgiven and viewed differently, we went inside.

When everyone left, I was instructed to head up stairs to rest. Before going to sleep, I changed into my nightgown and opened my presents. I didn't get a present from Haruki because I would be getting it when we got there, Madoka and Kioshi said they would give me my gift there too.

Before leaving, the Hokage had told me to go to his office tomorrow so he could give me my gift. I had told him it was fine, but he had insisted. Naruto also said he would give it to me later because it wasn't finished. I was curious as to what they were planning but decided to wait for tomorrow.

The first present was obviously Ino's. She had made me promise her that her's would be the first one I opened.

**"We never stood a chance with her ultimate weapon."** Inner stated. I agreed and proceeded to open the gift. I smiled at what was inside. Ino knew what I wanted to be when we got older so she got me a book. A book about flowers, but flowers that had medicinal properties. The book was held closed with a pretty silk red ribbon. I remembered her giving a ribbon to a young Sakura in the anime/manga. Untying the ribbon gently, I got up off the floor where the table in the middle was, and went to my closet. At the very back of the room was a small drawer to place accessories but I placed scrolls and books in it instead. I picked up the red scroll Haruki had gave me before and tied the ribbon around it.

I left the book on the table for me to read later. The next present was from the Uchiha's.

**"Kyaaa! I wonder what Sasuke-kun picked out for us?!"** Inner squealed. I rolled my eyes and began opening the present.

"You know, his mother probably picked it out." I informed. I felt her frown. Once opened I noticed there was more than one present inside. There was five in all and Inner started squealing to find Sasuke's. Instead of trying to guess which one was from him, I just grabbed one randomly. The first one was a nice black tea cup. It had a branch with beautiful sakura engraved into it; the pink on the flowers stood out beautifully against the black color.

"This is really pretty. I wonder who-" Before I finished my sentence a small tag dangled down. Reaching for it, I read the name on the small tag. Itachi. So he had gotten me a pretty tea cup.

**"How cute! Now find Sasuke-kuns!"** Inner said. I sighed at her insistence. Looking around for the small tag that had his name. I found it after a few seconds of looking, Sasuke had gotten us...a kunai.

**"WHAT! THAT'S IT?!"** Inner spoke in disbelief. I looked at the kunai closer and noticed that it wasn't like all the others. Sure it had the same design, but the grip/handle was wrapped in a dull pink color instead of the usual white/grey. With an even closer observation, I noticed that on the leaf-shaped blade there was engraved cherry blossoms.

"This is actually nicer than I expected from Sasuke." I said still inspecting the skillfully crafted kunai.

**"...I guess it is pretty."** Inner grumbled with a blush and I rolled my eyes. Placing the kunai beside the cup, I moved onto the next gift. I picked up a folded piece of paper and accidentally dropped what was inside on my lap. Grabbing the item that was undeniably a bracelet. It was black with pink cherry blossom engravings.

"Did they all plan to engrave these with Sakura's?" I wondered. Shaking my head, I read the letter.

_To Sakura-chan,_

_I'm sorry I couldn't tell you happy birthday personally but I had a mission. I hope you like the present I chose. Also, it's not just any ordinary bracelet. Try enhancing the bracelet with your chakra, like how you did with the kunai._

I raised an eyebrow and did as he suggested. I watched as the bracelet grew in size and stopped when I stopped inserting chakra in it.

"This is pretty cool. Kind of like my weights." I said and then retracted the chakra and watched the bracelet shrink. I looked back to the letter and finished reading it.

_It's pretty cool, isn't it? I had the idea when I saw you play ninja with the kids. When you lassoed the other kids, it's pretty cool what a regular item and some Fuinjutsu can make. Well anyway, Happy birthday Sakura-chan!_

_From Shisui Uchiha_

I smiled and put the present on the table. The last two presents where from Fugaku and Mikoto. Mikoto had gotten me a pretty hair ornament. It also had Sakura's as the design, and petals dangling from the flowers. Fugaku's present was a book on taijutsu forms. Some where recognizable as the ones Kioshi taught me but some where completely new to me. This book would indeed be useful.

"These were all pleasantly surprising gifts." I said as I moved onto Tenten's gift.

Her gift was a scroll. It was green with red edges, there was also a letter attached. I smiled as I tried to read her handwriting. It wasn't as bad as Naruto's but it looked like every other kid's sloppy hand writing.

_Dear Sakura-chan,_

_Happy birthday Sakura-chan! Your present is a scroll containing weapons. I have some too but dad said that I had to practice more on my chakra because that's what unseals them. We should practice together some time, maybe we can perfect it at the same time. Hope you like it and have a great day!_

_From Tenten_

I smiled and thought about what she had said. I sighed at the thought, I'm pretty sure I know how it's supposed to look like doing this but before I even dared attempt this...I had a long way before I could even throw the weapons accurately. So first I had to practice more. With that I placed the scroll on the table and got up for bed.

**~Fourth Week~**

The last week of February was very nice. The Sakura trees had bloomed and were just as beautiful as the ones in Water. The day after my birthday I went over to the Hokage's tower. When I had arrived, Naruto was already there. They had both gave me their presents. I thanked them and opened the Hokage's first because Naruto had insisted. When I did, I saw that it was two pair of gloves. One pair was pink and very long, long enough to reach one inch below my elbows. It was made of thin cloth material that wouldn't make my hands get too hot or cold. The other pairs were made of a black leather material.

The Hokage explained that the pink ones were used for just wearing, but the black ones were for when I trained. This reminded me of the older Sakura who always wore gloves. I smiled and thanked him. He nodded and said that he hoped this would prevent future hospital trips. That's when I understood. He gave me the gloves so I wouldn't worry about having direct contact and overloading my mind with thoughts and memories. I smiled brightly and thanked him again for his thoughtfulness.

When Naruto's turn came, he insisted we go up on the roof first. I was a bit confused. I saw the Hokage give me a look that suggested he knew what Naruto was planning but wouldn't tell me.

When we got up to the roof, I saw a guy behind a very old fashion camera. Hiruzen ushered us over in front of the camera man, and I followed still a bit confused. The Hokage walked in front of the railing that surrounded the tower's roof. Naruto had pulled me by the arm over to stand in front of Hiruzen. I chuckled, finally coming to realize that he wanted to get a picture of us three. We looped arms and Naruto raised his hand in the air with two fingers sticking up, in a peace sign. I chuckled and looked at him pout at me to do the same. I wasn't really the type to get pictures taken of, I preferred to take the pictures. Seeing Naruto look at me with that face...ultimate weapon number two, I gave in. Raising my right hand up into a peace sign, I waited. The Hokage chuckled and leaned down with his hands on each of our shoulders. When the camera man counted down to three, we all smiled happily towards the camera.

When the picture was developed, the camera man showed it to us. The picture was actually very nice. We all looked really happy, Naruto was actually smiling cutely instead of his goofy, eye closed grin. The Hokage and Naruto both liked it so he ordered to make two more copies. Once that was completed, we each had our own, mine stayed as the original for it was part of Naruto's gift apparently.

I was finally given the chance to open it and found a picture frame as my present. The frame was a pretty light blue. The frame had the left side of a Sakura tree with its branches over to the top and left side of the frame. They were filled with cherry blossoms and a bright yellow sun on the left corner aswell. I placed the picture inside and looked at it before giving Naruto a big hug as well as the Hokage

The rest of the week was filled with meeting up with friends. Ino was one of them, from our weekly play dates as well as Tenten. We played most of the time but with Tenten, we practiced some weapons.

I met up with the Uchiha's on Saturday, our usual practice days. Shisui had asked me a thousand times if I was really okay, referring to my trip to the hospital. He said he was so shocked when he was told and he apologized for not being here. I told him it wasn't his fault...at all, so he shouldn't apologize. After making him believe I was okay we went out for tea and dango. He said this day would be just to relax, I had been fine but they insisted. When I suggested to go to a certain dango shop they had agreed. The nice old lady's dango's where one of the best, rivaling Madoka's. We had a good time chatting as we ate and drank. Sasuke and Shisui doing most of the talking, though Itachi and I did talk sometimes.

During our conversation, I had somehow remembered something I should have done earlier. I thanked them for the gifts and told them that I had really liked them all. Shisui had stated how he just _knew_ I would. Talking about my birthday had me asking them about their's. Shisui answered cheerfully that his was on the 24 of September. His birthday would be easy to remember since it was a day after Ino's. Sasuke grumpily said his was on July 23. He was probably still a little grumpy we didn't train today. Itachi had told me his was on June 9 while his mother was a week before his on the 1. And lastly Fugaku's was in August just like my real birthday back in my other world, however his was on the 16.

After that, we left to our houses and I had left to go to the training grounds. I wanted to have a little bit of training for the day. I stretched and did my usual exercises, katas, and dance forms. Once done, I decided to do something I couldn't do at home. I ran around the training grounds in different levels of speed. Starting off with walking around and making a mental track that wouldn't get in other people's way. After that it was jogging and then running with a steady pace for a long time. Once it was almost time for me to go, I sprinted the remained of my 10 laps. The track I had followed wasn't too long so the ten laps hadn't been so bad, just something small for me to start off with.

At the end of my sprint I had almost made it back to my starting point when I was knocked into and tackled to the ground. The person had come from my left and I was surprised I had not sensed them coming my way. Even Inner had been surprised and she was better than me.

"I am so sorry!" The person said and stood up. As I messaged my head, I stood up too. Looking back to the kid and noticing who it was stopped my apology.

'No wonder we didn't sense him...its Lee. I was actually wondering where he was, I should of known he was training.' I thought

"No it's okay. I'm partially responsible." I said with a reassuring smile. I watched as the boy blushed a shade lighter than my hair.

"N-Nonsense! I-It was my fault!" He said with a bow. I shook my head as I looked at the young version of Lee...well the younger version of the young Lee. He was actually kind of like Tenten. They both had this Chinese style about them. He had long hair braided down to his mid-back, with the top part parted in the middle. He had a chinese style green shirt and wore black pants and flats. He still had the large rounded black eyes with the lashes underneath and the bushy eyebrows; but just like everyone else here. He changed to looking real, because he was real to me. I still got amazed every time I saw someone or something, the smallest of their features such as their hair and leaves on plants was so detailed. Completely different than watching it on a television or a computer.

"By the way, I'm Sakura Haruno. What's your name?" I asked and watched him look surprised. Since he hadn't met Gai yet he was probably still really self-conscious and got picked on a lot.

"...My name is Rock Lee..." He answered and I smiled.

"Ne Lee-san are you from here? I have a friend who wears the same style of clothing and she's not from here." I asked and explained my reason as to why I did.

"That's right..." He said and looked a bit sad and red faced. Was he ashamed? Did he get picked on so much about his looks and place of birth that he was embarrassed. Was he that much different to people here? I shook my head at how mean people could be. The kid in front of me would grow up to be amazing. I mean, he hardly used his chakra, since he wasn't able to control his chakra very well. Though he did use his chakra only when he needed to, such as water walking and opening his eight gates. I know that if I wasn't placed into Sakura then I would probably be like him or worse no chakra at all. Even with training I don't think I could have gotten as far as he did.

"That's really cool! How is your village like?" I asked with a curious tone to my voice. He was a little hesitant to my questions.

"...It's nice. I lived in a small village compared to some around here...but we still had a great village! We all knew each other and were friends! We had calm neighborhoods and enough toys to play with! There was lots of space to play too, we would go up the mountains or in the forest. And we had comfortable homes and weren't poor!" Lee said with a red face and a little out of breath. So people picked on him because they thought he was poor. Their pretty stupid.

"That sounds like an awesome village! Hope I see it one day!" I said and watched him look at me with surprise.

"...R-Really?" He asked and I nodded. Looking up to the sky, I noticed that it was darkening quickly.

"Ne Lee-san, I have to go, but I hope to see you again someday." I said honestly. He nodded slowly and I waved and ran home.

The next day was just full of training with Kioshi and Chouko, and I was told we would be leaving at the end of the first week of April.

**~April~**

The first week was spent saying goodbye to my friends. I told them I would be gone for around five months. Most did not seem happy, Sasuke was actually looking grumpy when I had given them the news. Some had started to get teary eyed, which was just silly since I would be back. In order to make them feel better, I told them I would bring them souvenirs. I told Sasuke, Itachi, Mikoto and possibly Fugaku that they would receive a present from Sora since I would not be here. I wasn't sure if I would be back to give Fugaku the present personally, but just incase I included him. So for the first part of the week, I spent most of the time playing with everyone, separately of course. They had yet to really become friends with each other.

So again, we stood at the gates and said goodbye to some who had came. Chouko and Ino and her family came to see us off.

It took us the whole second week to arrive to the Land of Valleys; since we were going straight to the Land of Water we didn't stop by the smaller villages. Our next week was spent on boat, towards the Land of Water. The whole trip was peaceful. I had forgotten how amazing it was to travel. When we had time, Kioshi would help me practice, but since I had fainted I had one day of the week to rest. Also when I didn't train, I would study the books I was given and the ones I had gotten from the library. The book Ino had given me was very informative. I had passed by a lot of flowers from the book and memorized them. I had finished most of the other books, having most of the month for reading.

On the fourth week, we had arrived in Water, but that week would be spent walking to Haruki's house.

**~May~**

At the beginning of the first week, we had arrived. I had sent Sora earlier so he could inform him of our arrival. When we got there, Sora was happily on Haruki's shoulder standing outside waiting for us. He looked really happy when he saw us. We greeted and hugged each other. He lead us to his living room to have some tea while we talked.

I had also gotten my presents. Haruki's was a fan. With normal observation it looked beautiful and perfect to use in my dances. But as I inspected it further, the ribs had small sharp tips on the top, poking through the decorative paper so it could be used as a weapon. The design was surprisingly not Sakura's. Instead it had a dark blue almost black background and the purple flowers from Wisteria trees dangled on the right side. On the left side there was butterflies and a crescent moon on the top left side. On the bottom there was water ripples that were caused by the fallen petals.

Madoka's and Kioshi's present had been joined together. What they got me brought back fond memories of my other world. They got me a camera. I was told by them that they had noticed my fascination with pictures. I was very happy and gave them all hugs. I took the first picture of all of us, setting it in a timer. I knew that here, technology was far more expensive and I would make sure to treasure it greatly.

Madoka and Kioshi had informed him of my recent trip to the hospital. Haruki had been worried and said we would take things slow when it came to training. So all of that week was just spending time with the family.

Second week I was told we would leave in the very last week of June. Knowing that, I took the time to learn and spend as much time with Haruki. I was very happy when I had found out that Haruki played both Shogi and Go. So now I had a playing buddy. He killed me in Shogi but I got really close to beating him in Go. I was very surprised that he was that good, but that just meant I would get to learn more.

On the third week, I finished all the basic katas from all the weapons, but since they were basic, I had a lot more to learn. He evaluated all of them and said I could do more, but I still had to practice the basics. He also told me that he heard from Kioshi that I was learning dances, and that I was incorporating them to a style of fighting. He said the fan he had given me was for that purpose but I would have to incorporate that into it myself.

On the fourth week I had finally beaten Haruki in Go. I still hadn't even gotten close to beating him in Shogi; but I was lasting longer each time. I was also very happy when I reach 300 in releasing chakra from my tenketsu. My dances had also been perfected. I could now dance them with the grace and natural flow that Chouko demonstrated, well, that was what Madoka had said. Even so, I was progressing very nicely. On the day where I could not train every week, it was spent studying. I had finished the library books and I had already practiced half of Fugaku's book. With Inner's help, memorizing them was much faster.

With all the help I've been giving with chores, Madoka has been giving me an allowance. I didn't really need it, but then I had remembered the birthday gifts and souvenirs that I would need to give, so I accepted it. So during the last week of May, I started going into the markets more, looking for gifts. I decided souvenirs could be left for last, and Mikoto's and Itachi's would be first. After saving up money for great gifts, I had finally found them. It was never really easy for me to pick out gifts, but I usually found really good ones in the end. For Mikoto, Madoka had helped pick out a really beautiful kimono. She had paid for half, stating that since she was her friend aswell, she would help too.

The kimono had multiple layers, it was one of those that just looked really amazing at first glance. The outer layer was a black color with butterflies of different shades of blue.

Itachi's was a bit harder to find. I asked Kioshi and Haruki what would be a good gift. Kioshi knew who I was talking about, but Haruki didn't. I told him about Itachi and they both had suggested weapons, but I didn't really like that idea. Inner had asked why, and I had answered by saying how I thought he always received weapons. I wanted to get him something that wasn't what he usually got. So at the end of the week, I had found something. It was almost perfect timing that Haruki was visited by a friend. The old woman specialized in herbs and medicine. I had asked her if she knew of a medicine that was really effective. She was impressed that I knew of herbs and had asked me to come to her shop. I complied and went, noticing all the herbs she had inside. There was some that I knew and a lot that I didn't. After countless different medicines that she had showed me, none of them were strong enough. She did however tell me she could make a really good medicine with a certain flower up in the mountain, but that she was too old to go. She gave me all the information of where to find it. Deciding I still had a few more day until his birthday, I decided to go.

**~June~**

Before the first of June I sent Sora to Konoha with a scroll for Mikoto. It contained the Kimono along with a letter. After sending it, all of us headed to the mountain to look for the flower the old lady told us about. I was surprised that everyone had come but was happy because it was a good family bonding time.

It took us three days to find the flowers. Madoka had actually found it. We took some and went to the shop so the woman could make the medicine. When she was done she placed it inside a vial that looked quite nice, almost like a kunai. The medicine had a blue color so the transparent kunai vial made it look nothing like a medicine vial. She gave me the idea to buy a nice silver chain so it wouldn't look like medicine and no one would try to steal it. The woman said that it was the best medicine she's ever made. It helped cure headaches of any kind if he drunk it, but also healed wounds if he applied it. I was really impressed and had made sure to remember how she made it.

So until his birthday came, I had to find something else to do. Feeling abit homesick and missing hanging out with the others had me bored. It was still the first week and only a few more days until Itachi's birthday. I decided to be a bit mischievous, so I started to make small pranks on the guards. Since they were ninja, I made sure to atleast make this a good form of practice.

I suppressed as much chakra with the help of Inner. I also tried to be stealthy. Quickly making my way towards them. I tied a long vine from Haruki's garden and placed it in their path. They usually did regular walks around the house outside the gates, so they were slowly making their way here. Once the vine was tied to both sides, I had jumped onto a tree on the other side of the gates. I watched how they strolled by and was amazed they didn't sense me. I watched with barely surppressed amusement as they walked closer. Once their foot got caught on the vine they fell face first on the ground. Compared to Inner who had busted out laughing, I was stuck with snickering and covering my mouth to be quiet. I watched as they talked amongst themselves about stupid plants. They were so silly. No plants near them grew those vines, but it was best they didn't know that. I quickly ran towards the house to look for others who wouldn't mind getting a little prank done on them.

For the next few days all I could do was train, spend time with Haruki and pull small prank on people. When it was finally time, I sent Sora again to Konoha with Itachi's present and a letter so he would know what it was and of course to congratulate him.

I only had two more weeks with Haruki until we would leave and go to Suna. So we spent it relaxing. On the second week we went over to a cousins house and had dinner. That was really the only thing that was different. The rest of the week was spent training or enhancing my skills. The guards had yet to know it was me pulling the pranks, but I could tell that they knew something was weird. By the end of the week I had been able to pull small pranks on Haruki and even Kioshi. It was very small things like misplaced objects or too much sugar in their coffee. It was really funny, seeing their reactions.

The third week of May was filled with lots of shopping. I got everyone a some souvenirs. I played Shogi and Go with Haruki and finally beat him in Go. Playing Shogi with him made me better but I still couldn't beat him. I also got Sasuke's birthday present ready for his birthday next month. I knew exactly what to get him. I had asked Haruki if I could give a friend a pet Hawk. He agreed and he even gave me one that had yet to hatch. He explained to me that it would still take awhile for it to hatch and showed me all that I needed to know so I could inform Sasuke. I was sure he was going to like having his own Hawk, especially if he got to raise it himself.

Before the week was over, I had done the right thing and told everyone that I had been playing pranks on them. The looks I had received made me laugh.

Also the old lady that had made the medicine had giving me some pointers on herbs; and by the end of the week, we said our goodbye's and walked towards the boat.

The whole last week of May was spent walking through the Land of Water. I would train on my new katas when we had time throughout the day.

**~July~**

The fist and second week of July was spent on the boat. We had taken a curve around islands by boat to arrive in the Land of Honey. We spent less time there since our destination was Suna but we did enjoy some new sweets. When we arrived in the desert, I had forgotten how bad it was, but Inner was there to remind me. Her constant screams of it being too hot was something that kept me focused and not faint on the spot. It was so hot that I had literally fell asleep right when we had arrived in a hotel and went to bed. We crossed the desert faster than last time and so we rested less, making us dead tired. I was so glad I had given the Hawk egg to Sora so he could slowly make his way towards Konoha. I don't think this weather would be good for the baby Hawk. Thinking about his reaction when he saw his present also made me keep going. I had instructed Sora that he had to give Sasuke the note first that had a congratulations and directions on how to take care of the baby.

The third week had come and we would finally go out into the village. I was really sad that I could not find the sand siblings at all. My guess was that they weren't allowed outside much anymore. Gaara must have been locked away because of Shukaku. My hopes were lost on the fourth day of searching for them. I had decided instead to look for someone I knew was still around, Chiyo. Fortunately, I found her on the fifth day. She had been crossing the market by herself when I caught up to her. She had looked very surprised and I had told her all about what happened, leaving out the Konoha part for now. I was very glad that she did not question me.

We talked for most of the day and I had told her that my other friends wouldn't be here and so I would be looking for her most of the time. She had actually agreed albeit a little slowly but still, I could tell she was feeling better. I was glad that she was returning to the funny old lady that I had seen/read her act like.

For the rest of the week, we did not meet, so I trained. When I was insisted to rest by Madoka and Kioshi, I would try to replicate the medicine the old lady had taught me. During our journey towards Suna, I had grabbed many flowers and herbs that would be needed, I also had three flowers from before. I had them all sealed in a scroll and so now I only had two flowers left. When the medicine was finished and had all the qualities the old lady told me it should have, I placed it in a vial.

On the first day of the fourth week of July, I searched for Chiyo. Instead of running around like crazy, I used chakra to sense her out. I had found her much faster this time and she was with her brother Ebizo. Lucky for me she wasn't doing anything so I was able to get her to spend time with me. I had asked her if I had done this medicine correctly, I knew I had, but I just wanted her to see that I knew how to make something. Both Chiyo and Ebizu looked surprised and had both tested the medicine on a small cut they had created with the thorn of a near by cactus. I watched as they applied the medicine and watched it heal the small cut quickly. I was still amazed that it was that fast, but I knew it also depended on the wound's size.

They were finally interested and asked me what I had used and who I had learned it from. I told them and watched as their face took on one that was slightly impressed. This was it, the moment to gain their friendship. I told them I had two more flowers and I had asked if they wanted them, since I could get them much easier than them. She surprised me by accepting rather quickly. I told her I would have to do it tomorrow because the sun had been going down. She understood and pointed her finger to a further area away from the village markets and houses. She said to keep going that way tomorrow and I would arrive at her place.

The next day, I had asked Madoka and Kioshi if I could last a bit longer outside the hotel. Madoka had agreed with hesitance, while Kioshi agreed readily saying that I should experience the difference of daytime and nighttime adventuring.

Finding Chiyo's place was easy. All I had to do was follow her chakra. Her and Ebizo's house they retired into looked very comfortable. It was farther away from the others and although it wasn't the only house around here, they each had comfortable distances. I also noticed as I climbed the sand stairs that this house had a round structure beside it that was a lighter shade then the rest.

When I made it to the top, Chiyo was already waiting outside, probably from sensing me. She greeted me nonchalantly but at least she was initiating it. She lead me inside and I noticed her house being very plain but nonetheless comfortable. She lead me to a room where it seemed to be her lab. It had vials and test tubes, beakers, and her own herbs. I pulled out the scroll from my bag and opened it. I allowed her and her brother to inspect the multicolored flowers. They thanked me and safely placed the flower in another scroll.

The rest of the day was spent like normal. We talked, but this time they asked me about what I knew about my future goal. I told them and saw them nod at my knowledge. Ebizo had become much more nicer since we met and Chiyo herself had gotten to open up to me. She even asked if I fished, I think that was her hobby. I said yes, but that I wasn't that good at it. I was lead to the round structure I had seen before. It had no ceiling and a pond in the middle of the room. We sat around it and I watched as they fished. They asked if I wanted too, but I declined and said I'd rather observe. They had only two fishing poles, since they were usually by themselves and I didn't want to take theirs.

Kioshi had been right. Walking the streets at night did feel completely different than in the daytime, especially for me who isn't from this world. I could see how it was scary for Madoka to allow me this privilege, but I was careful and knew how to protect myself.

The rest of the last week of July was really tranquil. I went over to Chiyo's and Ebizo's house and we talked, fished, and they had even started helping me memorize herbs. We spent a lot of time together and during their fishing time, I would meditate. After some time, I was given my very own fishing rod and I had fished rather happily that day.

**~August~**

The first week of August I had gone to the markets and looked around for some more souvenirs. I had decided to get everyone something from both places. Fugaku's birthday was coming up soon, along with my real birthday. I wasn't sure what to get him. I had asked Kioshi and Madoka but they had said that I probably knew him better, which surprised me. Fugaku really did keep to himself. It was amazing he even liked me at all.

It was too bad I couldn't meet the sand siblings. There was one person's birthday that I knew more than others because it was mine too. Temari, her birthday was the same day as mine, and I couldn't even tell her congratulations.

On the second week, Chiyo and Ebizo helped me pick something out for Fugaku. After giving up in finding one alone, I had turned to them. I wasn't sure if this would work out but it had actually been a great time. It was very funny seeing the two siblings acting the way I had seen/read. They both had different opinions of what I should get my elder friend. Ebizo said Suna's best tea, Chiyo said Suna's best sake. I had laughed at their completely different choices, effectively breaking their quarrel. I told them that I would get both since I didn't really know his preference. Chiyo had obviously paid for the alcohol but she had used my money that I had saved up. That day I had also asked for their birthday and found out that Ebizo's had already passed in January the sixth. And I would be missing Chiyo's who's was in October the fifteenth.

That day I had sent Sora again to Konoha for the last time by himself. The third week went by calmly. Lots of training and more shopping went down. I tried to get an idea of what I would get Shisui and Ino. I didn't have to find something, but I had really wanted an idea.

My last days in Suna were almost up. I only had a week left before leaving. Most of the last week I spent with Chiyo and Ebizo. We drank tea, studied herbs, fished, and walked around the village. I had finally seen the famous dead act of Chiyo's and just like I had suspected, I did not find it funny. It had scared me, even though Inner could sense her chakra. Chiyo had been a lot more friendly and I had enjoyed the change. She hadn't opened up so much as to tell me about Sasori; but she did hint that she had a grandchild when she said I reminded her of someone close. Something was bugging me, and I had asked her one day when we were both alone, Ebizo had gone to the market. We were fishing in her pond when I had asked her if she thought of us as friends. She had said yes and I was extremely happy the whole day. We were finally friends and so I asked if I could write letters to her once I was back in my home village. She had agreed and also told me that she knew that I was from Konoha, and that she did not mind. I was very surprised as to how she had found out, I had even asked her. She told me she knew by my father, she had apparently seen him here on a mission one time and saw his Konoha hitai-ate.

I was afraid that she would stop being friends with me, but then I had remember what she had said. She already knew I was from Konoha, and still said we were friends. Leaving it as that, I enjoyed the rest of my time with them.

At the end of the week, we said goodbye's to our friends and left for Konoha. I couldn't believe I hadn't seen none of the sand siblings on my whole stay here. I had heard about them, mostly the bad things about Gaara. I had even asked Chiyo what had happened when I left. She hadn't said anything important but I knew enough from what she did. Apparently they did have Gaara locked up somewhere, until he got out that is. He would eventually go out but even knowing that I didn't find him. I would have to wait for the Chunin exams or another trip we may have later on, though I highly doubted that we would meet again before the exams. All I could do now was wait and train, but most importantly plan. I needed a plan of action for the upcoming event. This time, I would make Neji's life a bit less painless and help the Hyuga's somehow come together as a family that they were.

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**Hey guys sorry if you wanted to read about the event around Hinata. I was pretty busy and couldn't get it all in, but next chapter the event will definitely happen. Also, I would like your opinion on the event, I already have an idea of what I want to write; but I would like an idea of what you guys would want. Thanks for reading and remember to review! More reviews equals longer chapters!**


	28. Chapter 28

**Authors Note:** Hey guys, sorry you had to wait so long. School is such a pain, I had and will have for this upcoming week a lot of work to do. I'm sure after this upcoming week things will get better and I will be able to update regularly. Also, for people who didn't know on Monday when I was supposed to update, I hade posted on my profile the day I would be uploading. So next time I don't update on the regular schedule just check my profile. Thanks for being patient and I hope you enjoy and review!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons "**Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**First Fight**

**Sakura's POV**

**~September~**

The whole first week was spent walking towards Konoha. I was fine with that, since it gave me plenty of time to think. Inner and I had come up with lots of idea's as to how we would prevent Hizashi's death. First of all, we would somehow spend more time with both Hinata and Neji since we weren't really that close. Secondly, we would start giving the Hokage hints about the betrayal from Kumogakure.

We also thought of other things so we could take a break from all the gloomy thoughts. Ino's and Shisui's birthday was coming up and I wasn't sure what to get either of them. Ino's wouldn't be that bad, I could always play it safely by getting her something related to flowers. Shisui however, would be much harder. I didn't really know what he liked. I would have to discreetly ask him.

At the end of the week, we had finally arrived and I was happy to see Ino waiting at the gates. We spent the whole day together and I had asked our parents to allow us to walk through the village. To Ino's happiness, they had allowed us to go. The rest of the day we had spent together and I had told her about my trip. She had also not allowed me to forget that her birthday was coming up. I had told her not to worry that I would remember and get her something great. Though, I still hadn't figured out what to get her. When we returned back to my house, I had given her the two souvenirs I had promised.

On the second week of September, I had finally went back into my routine. I also went out into the village to find my other friends. Naruto was the easiest to find since he was usually eating ramen. He was really happy when he saw me. He had immediately stopped eating and hugged me in one of his big suffocating hugs. I gave him and Teuchi, and Ayame a souvenir. We then spent the day talking, well, I did most of the talking.

That week I had also met up with Tenten and she had the same reaction as Naruto and everything was slowly starting to get back to normal. I went to the bakery on my rest day and studied. That was when Mikoto had come in and was happy to see me. She had thanked both Madoka and me for the beautiful present multiple times. She also asked me if I wanted to come over since her sons and Shisui would probably want to see me. Agreeing to her suggestion we left the bakery with Sora quickly catching up and perching on my shoulder. Throughout the whole walk there, Mikoto had chattered lively. She kept thanking me and telling me that she had yet to wear the kimono, because she wanted to wear it on a special occasion. I had asked her if the others had also liked their gifts.

Mikoto spoke about how Itachi had liked his present while Sasuke was so excited about his. Mikoto had stated how I should have seen the boys reaction when they saw the egg. She said that even Shisui and Itachi helped Sasuke care for the egg. A week after they had received it, it had hatched and a small brown baby Hawk was seen. She had laughed and said that they had been so cute when the bird hatched. She described them as having a mother hens attitude. Inner had immediately transmitted an image of them acting like worried mother hens that almost made me burst out laughing.

When we arrived, we saw Shisui run out the gates followed by Sasuke and a much slower Itachi. They must have sensed our presence. We greeted cheerfully and talked about my trip. Both Sasuke and Itachi thanked me for the gifts. Sasuke had actually genuinely thanked me, and I could tell he would probably open up to me a bit more now. After the greetings Shisui had grabbed my hand and lead me inside. I was glad that I had took Hiruzen's idea to get more gloves. Now I could wear them and have no problem fending off another unexpected overload.

Being dragged inside, I saw a small bundle on the hallway in the front of the house. As I approached I saw the baby bird move. It looked a little different from Sora but it was a baby after all and its more prominent features wouldn't appear until later. I had asked them if they had picked out a name yet, and they had said no. Most of the day we spent sitting near the bird and thinking of some good names. I also made sure to tell them what to do once it got older.

During lunch Fugaku had arrived and had a small frown on his face, I could feel his distressed chakra swirl inside him. When he entered the room his frown disappeared and was surprisingly changed into a small smile. He thanked me for the gifts and said he enjoyed both of them. I had honestly told him I had a bit of trouble looking for his gift, until two elder friends had helped me.

Lunch went by nicely although Fugaku seemed a bit unfocused in our conversations and would drift deep in thought. Inner and I had a very bad feeling. He was possibly beginning to have conflict within the clan or Danzo. Before that progressed we had to somehow make them see that being loyal to Konoha was best for them. I would have to speak with the Hokage.

The rest of that day went by great. Fugaku and I had played a game of Go and I had one in a much faster time, much to his surprise. After playing, the others and I practiced for an hour before I had to leave.

Once I had left the Uchiha compound, I went straight to the Hokage tower. Hiruzen gave me a warm welcome and I had told him after amicably chatting that I had gotten a vision. I explained to him about the Hyuga incident. I left some stuff out since I had told him before that my visions were still vague. He understood from my vague explanation that something would happen involving kumogakure. I told him that if I had another vision, I would inform him.

The rest of the week was filled with training and trying to think of presents. I had gone over to Ino's place. Shikamaru and Choji had also been there and we played together. Ino took it upon herself to tell them all about my trip. I didn't mind and took the time to observe her and figure out what to get her. I also took out the scroll from my bag that had all the souvenirs. I gave both of them a souvenir from each place as Ino started saying how all three of us were invited to her house so we could play on her birthday. During her chattering, I had learned that Shikamaru's birthday was also coming up soon. Now I had to get one more present.

During the week on one of my training days, I met Lee again. Since I had all day, I spent it with him. We trained most of the time, but we took breaks when I bought us some drinks. Lee told me more about his previous village and I learned that he only lived with his grandparents and mother. I had told him that I hoped to meet them one day and the poor boy turned a bright shade of red. I couldn't really figure out why and Inner's snickering didn't help at all.

Lee had told me that he would soon be joining the academy and I had told him I would too, but one year after him. He looked a bit sad but I had advised him to stay strong and don't listen to what the bullies say. I told him that as long as I was around I would take care of them.

Towards the end of the second week, I was beginning to freak out. I had yet to get Shisui, Ino, or Shikamaru anything. I declined everyone's offer to play or train and decided that I had to find something. I did however accept advice from Choji and Mikoto who had come by the bakery a few times. But even with their help, I couldn't find_ the_ right ones.

After searching for what felt like forever. I had just decided to get Shikamaru a whole new Shogi board. It looked really nice and I was sure he would like it.

I stayed safe with Ino. During my trip in Water, I had gotten her a beautiful silky kimono. I wasn't sure if I was going to give it to her on her birthday, but I suppose it'll have to do. Walking around the market I had surprisingly bumped into Hinata, thankfully it wasn't literally. Her mother was with her and this would be the first time I had met her. She had long beautiful blue hair, just like Hinata's, except much longer and parted in the middle. She didn't have the pearl white eyes but instead warm brown colored eyes. Her name was Hikari and I found out that she was a very nice mother. I spent some time with them and getting to know them better. Hinata looked happy but still stuttered when she talked. Hikari was also very quiet but she didn't stutter which was a good thing.

I told Hinata and her mother I was looking for presents and they had helped me look for awhile. Hikari had also brought up the fact that Hinata was turning four soon as well. I had told Hinata to come to the bakery so she could pick out a cake. I had been really happy when she timidly agreed.

By the end of that day they had helped me pick out accessories that matched Ino's kimono. They had also provided me with some idea's for Shisui's gift. I was so lost that I almost thought about just giving him a lot of pastries; but from what I had heard from Mikoto, Shisui didn't really like that many sweets. He just really enjoyed eating the one's he did like.

By the beginning of the third week, I had, had enough. I went to every guy I knew...well, all the ones I felt were closest to me. I asked Kioshi, Inoichi, Shikamaru, Choji as well as their parents. I had asked Naruto, Teuchi, Hiruzen, and even Kakashi when I had met him walking towards the tower, although it was just a quick conversation since I had to find a present fast.

That day I had even asked Itachi, Sasuke, and Fugaku. When I left them and walked into the markets, I was looking around dejectedly. Every guy I asked answered with typical answers. It was either weapons, from most of them, and food from the others. Maybe I should settle for something safe?

I dejectedly walked the streets and noticed faintly that I had walked near Tenten's store. Having nothing else to do and already being here, I walked inside. The first thing that greeted me was Kenshin standing across the room. Everything was normal and there wasn't anything wrong, only what he was holding caught my attention. In his hands he held and inspected a tanto. My eyes widened and I realized that maybe I could get him something special after all.

Kenshin had noticed me but before more of my time could run out, I had ran out while saying I would come back another day. I quickly ran home with a fast sprint. This was not only good for a work-out but to get home quickly. When I arrived to my room, I began to hurriedly write some letters. One, was for Haruki. I asked if he could find me a tanto. I wrote down and scribbled a picture of an example of what I wanted. The second letter was to Chiyo. I wanted to ask if she could make a poison for the medicine that I had shown her.

The reason I was hurrying was for the fact that there was only a few more days until his birthday. Sora could quickly come and go to Suna, but Water was a bit further. When I finished, I instructed Sora on what to do. First, he was to go to Water to give Haruki the letter since he was furthest. I told him it was important and he had to do it quickly. Opening the window I watched as he flew off with a speed I had not seen him use before. Feeling a bit more reassured, I walked outside and scanned around the markets_ just_ incase we had no time.

**~Hours Later~**

I was very amazed when Sora returned late at night. I was actually asleep, but he had arrived outside my window perched on the rail. I got out of bed and opened the normal window beside my bed. All it had was flower pots on the outside and a railing around them so they would not fall.

I read the letters and was happy to know that both had agreed and knew of the time limit. Chiyo had said that it shouldn't be too hard for her to come up with a poison, although since it would be completely new, she would need more flowers.

Haruki had said it was no problem, he would just get a friend to custom make it to the design I had sketched. I was glad my OCD tendencies had made me draw neatly and distinguishable details for Haruki to see.

I wrote another letter and told Sora to take it to Haruki. I ordered him to stay and rest while Haruki picked some flowers and then take them to Chiyo. Once again he flew off only this time it was dark. He would deserve a long rest when this was finished. I was glad that Sora was a smart and trained messenger hawk. He knew to rest when he needed it and also how to stay away from trouble.

**~Next Day~**

Sora had arrived in the afternoon with a letter from Chiyo. She informed me that Haruki had told her the weapon would be ready tomorrow morning. She would probably be finished with the poison in two more days. That gave Sora time to rest for awhile then he would leave later tonight and get the tanto from Haruki. He would then go to Suna and take it to Chiyo. He could just rest there until everything was ready. Inner agreed with my plan and I left to go home. Sora needed to rest, because he would need to be quick when he made his way home again. The rest of that day I spent training. The only person I saw was Hiruzen and that was to tell him that I was getting more visions concerning the Uchiha's. All I was doing now, was making sure he stayed alert. I knew even if he suspected something, he would not take extreme action unless absolutely needed.

**~Next Day~**

It was Shikamaru's birthday and I was patiently waiting for Ino so we could go to the Nara's house. On our way there, Ino told me that she had only gotten him a book that her father helped pick out. Ino tended to have no opinion on "Really hard to read books." as she states. She had wondered what I had gotten him, since she hadn't seen a present. I told her it was in my pink book bag and before I could answer her unspoken question of what it was, we had arrived.

The whole day had gone great. We played, ate, and talked all day. When it was time for the presents, and since Ino had insisted he open them in front of everyone, we stayed longer. I was glad he had not gotten a new shogi board and was proud of myself when he looked happy to see the board. He noticed along with Shikaku that the board was different from their light brown colored one. The board on this one was darker and the pieces lighter to have a contrast against the board. I was just happy that he had liked it. Before I had left he had asked if I wanted to play. I agreed seeing that it _was_ still his birthday along with the fact that I didn't need to go home as early anymore. We ended up playing, with him as the winner of course, although I did last longer and played much better. Shikaku also played against me once, but after being brutally murdered in the span of a few minutes, I allowed them to play each other from then on. I observed on the side taking in their strategies and movements. I also conversed quietly with Choji, who seemed to want company instead of silence. I found out that he was sleeping over and that was why he had stayed long.

The evening was great and before I could decline the offer, I was already being escorted home by all three. As we walked, I noticed the difference from the daytime. This had been my first time out late in Konoha and I had really enjoyed it.

When we had arrived at my house, we said our goodbye's. Shikamaru had thanked me again and I had made sure to reminded them of tomorrow. Choji smiled worriedly while Shikamaru grunted out tiredly and with a hint of annoyance.

**~Next Day~**

I had woken up and immediately got ready for Ino's party. We would be in the Yamanaka's house this time and although I've only been there before, I had never stepped inside. It was like all clan houses, traditional, and beautiful. I was to be sleeping over since it was her request after all.

When I had arrived, I was immediately pulled inside by Ino herself. She had stated how she had waited for me for hours; though it had only been around three since I had woken up. We talked until the others arrived and she had even gave me a tour of her house. She had teasingly stated that she was doing it, so I wouldn't get lost during my stay. I had frowned at her comment which only seemed to have caused her to giggle, from what I suppose had been her prediction.

When all her guest had arrived, we ate and then played together. After what seemed like hours of playing, it was time for presents. Again, just like with Shikamaru she had opened them in front of us. She had gotten all sorts of presents from her family members and friends. Though it did have me curious all day as to not seeing many children our age. All of them had been either family members or our regular four member group. She had stopped my train of thought when she tackled me to the floor. She had apparently liked my present a lot. The silky kimono I had chosen for her was blue, and had a lot of her favorite flowers as the print. Also, she seemed to really like the different style I had picked out. Instead of the more traditionally long ones, this one ended at her knees like a puffy skirt. She also looked happily at the accessories that Hinata and her mother had helped me pick out.

Once it was time for people to leave, she had practically dragged me off to her room. We soon arranged our futons close to each other and laid inside of them. We didn't sleep for at least an hour later but that was alright with me, Ino looked like she had fun all day.

**~Next Day~**

I had awoken earlier than Ino, but I had made no movement to get up. I laid on my futon thinking about the day. It was Shisui's birthday and there was no doubt they expected me at the Uchiha compound today. I would have to wait for Sora to return, hopefully he did return.

When Ino did wake up, I quickly explained to her that I needed to go over to the Uchiha compound for Shisui's birthday. She had childishly whine about wanting to go, but she stopped eventually when I told her to get more acquainted with them first. She had pouted and grumpily followed me out to get breakfast.

Once breakfast was over it was already twelve o'clock. We changed into our clothes, which consisted of dresses. Ino because she loved them, and I wore one because of Shisui's birthday.

When I left the Yamanaka's house, I walked towards the bakery. All the way there, I tried to look for Sora, but could never see him anywhere.

Surprisingly enough the one I did find was Neji and his father. We greeted each other politely and we talked for awhile. This was good, I could speak to the Hokage later and tell him I bumped into the Hyuga's. I'll tell him that I got a vision because I had forgotten to wear my gloves, which was true. Most of the things I had gotten for my birthday, besides the books and tea cup, I decided to use later. I didn't want to mess his present to me up, so I had gotten other gloves. I wasn't accustomed to wearing them all the time so I did forget sometimes.

After they had escorted me to the bakery, I had sealed all the pastries Madoka had made and walked right back out. I sighed and slowly, very slowly made my way to the compound. Even though I was late, I didn't really want to show up empty handed. When I was about ten minutes away, I heard a cry far away. I quickly searched the skies and found Sora to be really far away in the opposite direction. I smiled brightly and sprinted my way towards him to shorten his flight. I whistled for his attention as I ran towards him.

When we met in the middle, I hurriedly untied the scroll and letter from his leg. I ran towards the Uchiha compound while reading the letter and Sora on my shoulder. Chiyo had said that it had taken her a little bit longer than expected, but to make sure I explained to them that the only antidote is the one I had shown her. She had created a whole new poison thanks to that.

After tucking the letter in the side pocket of my book bag, I unsealed the scroll. I was jogging now, but still kept a fast pace so I wouldn't be later than I already was. I was speechless when the tanto appeared. It was beautiful and I couldn't help think that all of Haruki's friends were pretty cool. It looked just like my sketch. It's black sheath was lacquered so it shined, it also had his name engraved in a silver color. The silver handguard was braided with a black cloth, and the stainless steel blade crafted beautifully. Inside the handgaurd two small vials that contained the poison and antidote were stored. It was indeed beautiful.

I ran quickly towards the compound and felt really bad when I saw them standing outside waiting for me. When I finally reached them, I sent Shisui an apologetic smile, but I believe it came out more tired looking to them. I was so out of breath I couldn't answer their unspoken question. I extended my hand with the gift and breathlessly congratulated him.

Once my breath had returned to normal. I explained to him where the poison and antidote were stored. I also told him that he could only use the medicine that he and Itachi had, since it was a completely new poison. He seemed to have liked the gift since he kept asking me questions about it. Once the presents had been given, we ate.

I had spent the whole day with them and I went home late at night. Of course, Mikoto didn't allow me to go home alone. So Itachi and Shisui escorted me home.

The rest of the week went by much more relaxed. All that was left was to think of what to do for Naruto.

**~October.~**

The first week of October I spent it training and looking for some sort of present for Naruto. I spent some time with Ino, as well as Tenten. Itachi had gone off to Iwagakure for the chunin exams. They had invited me on Shisui's birthday to go and watch the chunin exams with them. It would start in November. I had agreed to go with the consent of Madoka and Kioshi. This would be a good opportunity to see Itachi in action.

On Naruto's birthday we spent the whole day together. I had took him to the markets and made him pick stuff. He picked out some posters, clothes, and surprisingly enough some studying supplies.

Afterwards I had invited him over for a sleepover. He ate with us some dinner, because I had previously treated him to some ramen for lunch; and then watched him happily blow out the candles on his cake. He had looked really happy and almost cried. We then played for a few hours before I showed him to the guest room and slept for the night.

Right after Naruto's birthday, I left with the Uchiha's towards Iwagakure.

Before leaving, the week prior, I had been telling the Hokage about visions for both the Hyuga's and the Uchiha's. I told him I would inform him if I see anything else, he too would be going to Iwa. The whole trip would last a week and a half to get there.

The trip was actually surprisingly fun. Mikoto, Sasuke, and Shisui made the trip fun and exiting. Fugaku didn't frown which was good and he even provided us with some pointers and tips during our practice times.

When we arrived during the middle of the third week, I observed everything since this had been my first time here. Iwa was very different, very...rocky. Although it did hold natural beauty like the other villages. It also helped with my dance. It allowed me to see how the dance got its powerful movements.

The rest of the third week we spent going around Iwa. We would get in different groups everyday and it was actually more interesting than nerve wrecking. Even the time when I was partnered up with Fugaku. We did get stares but my guess was that it had to do with my hair.

On the fourth week of October, Shisui left to go find Itachi and help train him. I spent most of that week practicing with Sasuke and Fugaku as our teacher. When Fugaku didn't work us to the bone, I would help Sasuke take care of Tadashi. He decided two weeks ago what he wanted to call him. Tadashi was a nice name and had a good meaning.

Sasuke was now acting less of a spoiled child and more of a friendly kid around me. He especially acted very cutely when he spoke about his older brother. It was amazing how much he idolized him. All I had to do was ask him a certain question about Itachi or about training and he would chatter about him. Now that we were more acquainted, I just called him Sasuke, which he didn't really mind since he didn't care what I called him.

**~November~**

On the first week of November we went and watched the final part of the exams. We sat close to the front, near the wall that was around my height that separated us from the fighting area. Instead of the stands up high like in the ones Konoha used, these were lower on the ground.

At the beginning they had all the fighters standing in the middle getting a speech from the proctor. I noticed Itachi was near the side. I noticed that he looked not in the least bit worried. He looked over and I smiled and waved calmly as Sasuke and Shisui practically screamed. I winced at how loud they were, I turned over and was expecting Itachi to be ignoring the two loud mouths. I was very surprised when I looked over and noticed the smile on his face. I smiled as I realized that he was still okay and had no thoughts of defecting yet.

When he turned towards the protector, I looked over to the Hokage who sat along with the Tsuchikage. He was the short one named Onoki. I remember him from the anime/manga.

He turned my way and I smiled and shook my head. He seemed to understand and so I turned and took in the eleven other candidates. Itachi and his two members where there, as well as two other ninja from Konoha. Two were from sand, while two from Mizukagure. The last three where from here, apparently also from the same team. I noticed how that group in particular kept shooting Itachi's team glares.

They must have decided to mark them as their main competition. Though they were doing a lousy job in controlling their chakra and emotions. I could practically feel it all the way out here in the stands.

After the instructions were given, one ninja from Mizu and one from Sand stayed behind. The others walked over to the other side, provided for them to wait at. I watched as all the daimyos and other onlookers looked on in relief. Inner also exaggerated a sigh, saying how she had been so bored and ready for them to fight. Ignoring her, I took to watching the match. I observed their movements and made sure Inner memorized them. In the end after thirty minutes the Sand-nin won.

It went like that for the next two matches. The other ninja from Mizu had passed as well as the member from Itachi's team.

Itachi was the fourth match and everyone seemed to quiet down and inch forward on their seats.

As Shisui pointed out that I have never seen Itachi fight, he said I would end up thinking he's super cool. I suppose he's partly right. I've certainly never seen him fight _personally_.

As the proctor asked them if they were ready, I couldn't help wonder if he was planning to end the match quickly. Ironically, he was up against one of the Iwa-nin. That team that had glared at him earlier.

The fight started with the Iwa-nin striking first. Of course he had missed his punch from a nonchalant Itachi. His attitude seemed to anger him more than his missed punch. Itachi had jumped away and threw kunai. The Iwa-nin had deflected them with his own. When they pushed off and met at the middle they exchanged punches and kicks, Itachi inflicting more damage to his opponent. I wasn't even sure if he was going to use his sharingan since he looked like he had it under control.

In the end he never did use it for this fight, it had only last around ten minutes. After his match the last two had passed on rather long. Itachi's other member had passed making his whole team go to the next round. The last member that passed was from here.

When the matches where done, they gave them thirty minutes for a break. After their break the first match was the guy's from Mizu and Sand. Their fight went on a good forty minutes, and the Mizu-nin had won. The next battle was very surprising. It was against the two Konoha members in Itachi's team. The results had been predictable to me throughout the match. One of them was much stronger than the other, being friends the stronger one held back until the end.

The very last match was Itachi and the Iwa-nin who was, I suppose the leader of his group. The match had been good. The Iwa-nin wasn't bad either, he had actually made Itachi fight a bit harder then his previous fight. Itachi didn't use his sharingan but I guess he didn't really need it.

Another thirty minutes were given before the Mizu-nin and the other Konoha ninja fought. The fight was fought well, the Mizu-nin had won but it did take him a while to beat the Konoha-nin.

The next round would start in thirty minutes.

As I watched the last two fighters step out, I had no doubt that Itachi would win. Not only for his hidden techniques but also from observing the Mizu-nin's injuries.

My prediction was correct, only ten minutes into the fight and Itachi had the poor guy unconscious on the ground.

After the announcement was given about the winner. The stands and competitors were beginning to clear out, only people who knew the winner had stayed behind. Sasuke had run towards his brother the moment he was allowed. Shisui had already shunshined over and gave Itachi a hug. I walked over calmly with Mikoto and Fugaku. I saw how Itachi ignored the hug and looked accustomed to the arm around his shoulders. He smiled down to Sasuke who had cutely congratulated him. Fugaku's congratulations was filled with pride and I was happy he didn't stress him out with training yet.

Mikoto had given him a hug and kiss on the forehead, filled with pride and affection. When it was my turn, I ignored Inner's request to hug him and settled with a big smile and vocal congratulations.

Before leaving, the medics had checked all the fighters and I took the opportunity to talk to the Hokage before he left. Mikoto had given me permission to go and so alone I had walked into the room sectioned for the Hokage's to rest before leaving.

The place had been well guarded and I had walked towards the room with many suspicious glances. Once I approached the door, I saw two ANBU as his guards, one of which was Kakashi while the other one I had yet to find out who they were. Their chakra signature was the same as the first one we felt guarding over Naruto.

"Hello. May I speak to the Hokage? Just tell him that Sakura wants to speak with him." I said and watched as the one who I had yet to know went in to inform the Hokage. I waited outside with Kakashi and stared up at him. I could sense his chakra shift uncomfortably from my open observation.

I was debating whether to say something to him but decided against it. The whole point of covering up with clothes and mask was to be unrecognizable. After a few more seconds of staring up at him, the other ANBU came out.

"Haruno Sakura, you may see the Hokage." He said which was unidentifiable from his mask muffling his voice. Though I guess even without the mask, it would still be hard to figure out who it was. I smiled and bowed slightly before stepping inside. Inner laughed and I held back a chuckle when we felt kakashi's chakra relax.

I had found the Hokage sitting on a comfy sofa with a table in front with tea set on top. We drank some tea while we started talking telepathically about my visions. I told him about Hinata's kidnapping and the treaty being broken by Kumogakure. When I finished, he said he would keep an eye on them but would wait for my return so we could make a plan. So after thirty minutes of talking to the Hokage, I stepped out and searched for the Uchiha's.

The rest of the week we toured Iwa and gave Itachi a small vacation. We had gone out to eat to celebrate as well as shop around the markets.

On our last trip to the market we had all went out together. As we walked through the streets, a woman and man walked by and stopped when they saw Mikoto.

"Mikoto? It's been a long time!" The woman said as they embraced in a friendly hug.

"That's right! How have you been?" Mikoto asked politely as the man went up to Fugaku and they too began to talk.

"Great and I saw Itachi's fight. It was amazing, but Mikoto you have such cute children. When did you have these two?" The woman blatantly asked. While the others looked at the woman with surprise, I looked up at her in curiosity.

'Did she really just ask that? How can she not see the striking differences between us?' I thought as I raised an eyebrow in wonder.

**"We have PINK hair! That's just stupid to think we're related!"** Inner said exasperatingly. She did have a point, even her husband was looking at her weirdly; but then maybe she might think we're adopted or something.

"Oh no! Sasuke was born four years ago but Sakura is just a friend of the family." Mikoto said. With that explained, the men went back to their conversation while the women talked. I didn't really want to listen but there wasn't really another choice. I turned to the right and looked at the merchandise on the stand.

"Oh I understand. I just didn't want to be rude of me not to ask." She said while I raised an eyebrow towards her direction.

'Your already being rude...but perhaps she did think we were adopted and didn't want to insinuate that we weren't apart of the family?' I thought as I turned back to the stand.

**"Nah! She's just being rude."** Inner stated. I smiled and shook my head as I picked up some cute bracelets.

"Well she is certainly cute! I'm sure your possibly thinking of future relationships. What with all these handsome boys." She said and I almost dropped the four brackets in my hand.

'Was she insinuating that I was to marry into the Uchiha's?!' I thought about it and frowned.

**"Oh! I like this woman now!"** Inner said and I couldn't help but to disagree with her. I quickly paid for the bracelets and took out the scroll from my bag. I turned back once the bracelets were sealed and didn't miss the multiple eyes on me.

'Did I do something wrong?...Or is there something on my face?' I thought as I noticed the stares range from normal to twinkling eyes. I raised an eyebrow and looked up to Mikoto.

"Is there something wrong?" I asked not being one to not understand. Mikoto shook her head and I nodded and took this time to zone the rest of their chat and speak with Inner.

It took ten minutes before we left on our way to our hotel.

The second week was spent travelling. It was fun and very interesting. Fugaku wasn't even frowning, that is until we saw the gates of Konoha. He seems to be conflicted. The whole time he was with us he looked normal and dare I say it, happy. He didn't even talk about training or Itachi having to become ANBU. All he did was stay contently quiet or give information when I asked him. When I was not learning things, I was answering questions. It almost felt like an interrogation...but a friendly one. There had been many questions ranging from what my favorite food was to if I was to cut my hair. The moment I had said I was going to let my hair grow, I heard Shisui's exaggerated sigh along with Mikoto's much more subdued. I had looked questioningly up to him for his reaction and Mikoto had stated that they liked my hair and she hopped that I would grow it out.

I had smiled up to her reassuringly. I told her that I would keep my hair long because I too liked long hair. It was true, in my old world I had very long hair and Sakura in the anime/manga did too. So I decided to keep it long for both of us, I would try not to cut it. If people ever told me that it was not practical in this profession then I would just ignore them. There were plenty of strong kunoichi with long hair and really who cared what they thought, as long as I trained hard my hair would be the least of my worries.

By the third week of November we had arrived in Konoha. I went straight home and gave Madoka a red bracelet that I had gotten. She had loved it and we talked about my trip during dinner.

That whole week I spent playing around with all the others. I gave Tenten a green bracelet and Ino a blue one. They had both liked them and said they would treasure it.

I made sure to meet up with the Hokage to go over some sort of plan. Although he had an idea of what would happen, I still only kept things simple. While the kidnapping and treachery was somewhat taken care of. I had to figure out how to keep Neji from getting the mark and Hizashi from dying.

Forth week of November was packed with meetings with the Hokage. So far we planned to go through with the peace treaty. He would keep a watch over Hinata and I would try to be closer and spend more time with her in public, that way perhaps they won't go through with it.

If the kidnapping still occurred then we would take down the Kumo-nin and break the treaty, but this time we would get Hinata before Hiashi caused a disaster like before. I didn't tell him about my plans with Neji because I knew that mark had to be changed from within the clan.

So the rest of the fourth week I spent it looking for the Hyuga's. Luckily I found Hizashi in the markets. I immediately took the chance to talk to him. He didn't look surprised when I walked up beside him on the fruit stand.

"Hello Sakura-san." He said with a calmness that I liked about him. He must have sensed me a long time ago.

"Hello. I haven't seen you in a long time." I said feeling acquainted enough not to bow all the time. He smiled down to me and nodded.

"That's right. But you've also just got back." He stated. I nodded and wondered how he had known.

"That's right. I went to watch the chunin exams with the Uchiha's." I said. He nodded and continued to grab the fruits. I watched his movements and saw how even though he was from the branch house, he was still like a clan head in all aspects.

"I know. Ino has been very...bored without your presences." He explained. Ah, so it was Ino. They must have had another clans meeting when I was away.

"Has anything interesting happened while I was away?" I asked as he finished with the fruit and walked the streets of the market.

"Hmm, not really. Neji and Hinata have seemed under-spirited too." He said. How could I get him to let me spend more time with them.

'Should I be blunt or just wait?' I thought of my choices.

**"Well you _can_ be pretty blunt sometimes and we may not get another chance like this, at least not before Hinata's birthday."** Inner stated.

"Hinata-san? Is her birthday not in a couple of weeks?" I asked.

"That's right but Hinata hasn't had a happy birthday in a long time." Hizashi answered. This is good. At least I know he pays attention to her and is nice.

"Could it have anything to do with her strict father?" I asked taking a gambol. I looked up and noticed he smiled a rather sad smile.

"Yes, I suppose that could be the issue. Hinata is to be the next clan head but she is lacking the qualities of one. Hiashi is still disappointed to help her improve. " He said.

"Isn't Hiashi-sama your brother?" I asked as he stopped near an herb stand. I should really show him the Yamanaka's flower shop, they have much better ones.

"He is my elder twin actually." He answered. I smiled as I nodded and picked up a good looking herb and handing it to him so he could inspect it.

"That's right, I did notice that before. But Hizashi-sama why can't Neji be clan head, he seems like he would be able to." I said and carefully watched his reaction.

**"Do you really think he'll answer us?"** Inner asked in doubt.

'It's not really a secret that their is a main and branch house in the Hyuga clan. I'm sure he will.' I answered.

"Well Sakura-san, Neji cannot be the clan head because we are a part of the branch house. We have to serve under the main house. I am sure you have noticed my mark, have you not? This symbolizes our servitude to them." He said as he allowed me to pick some herbs for him.

"I see, but that seems unfair. Do you _have_ to get that mark in order to serve under the main house?" I asked as we finished with the herbs.

"Unfortunately yes. It allows them to...remind us of our place." He answered discreetly. I already knew that the mark caused them pain if the main house wanted it to. I smiled up to him reassuringly.

"I am sure it won't be the same for much longer." I said and decided to call it a day. I said I had to meet up with someone and waved goodbye leaving Hizashi with confusion from my words.

I quickly left and went to the tower. I told Hiruzen about my meeting with Hizashi and I asked if nothing could be done about the marks. He said that it was the clans affair and that he could not overstep it. I thought that was stupid when Danzo was able to make Itachi kill his clan.

I had proposed a plan and although it was risky he had actually thought it was a good idea.

For the rest of the week, I spent it with some of the kids.

**~December~**

On the first week I found Hinata and Hiashi. I had debated whether to speak with them. Hiashi always made me want to punch something. I knew he would get better later, but right now he was just so arrogant and hard to get along with.

I had decided to speak with them and _almost_ regretted it when Hiashi stared down at me almost condescendingly.

I had politely greeted them and surprisingly I was able to spend some time with Hinata as they walked the streets. Hiashi had stayed quiet and only spoke when I addressed him. Even though he used the least words as possibly. After a few minutes of brightening Hinata's dull day, I left before Hiashi could chase me away.

That week I had also met with Neji. He was alone and had been practicing. As I watched him, I noticed the stressful look on his face. I could tell he was thinking about many things, his kunai were off by a lot.

I also noticed that he was yet to notice my hardly suppressed chakra. When I did step out, I noticed how his posture and expression changed to surprise. We talked for awhile before I suggested him to follow me. During our conversations, he would zone out and his mind would wander. Inner and I had a feeling that he was told about his "destiny".

I had lead him to the Hokage mountain and we sat on the first's head. He had asked me why we were here and I just told him to relax and not think of anything. We laid down and spent almost an hour just looking around in silence. This place had always helped me when I had trouble and so it might help him.

When it was sunrise we still did not move, not even when the stars began to appear above us. I had glanced at him and smiled when I saw his calm expression.

We laid on our backs and looked at the twinkling stars above. I was very surprised when he had started talking about his situation. He told me discreetly about his worries but I had already knew what it was about so I could put two and two together. I would speak only when I had been expected to give him some advice.

We left when it was eight o'clock. He had kindly escorted me home and I couldn't help but notice how he appeared to look a lot better.

The rest of the week was full of intense training. I didn't want Kioshi, Madoka, or anyone to see that I had increased my training so I went into the secluded training grounds.

The Third week was also filled with training. I focused more on my stamina which was still lacking. I knew that I had to increase it to be able to follow through with this plan and many more to come.

I met up with Naruto, Tenten, and Ino but no one else was seen. I had made sure to practice on mine and Inner's chakra sensing. We would also be needing this ability to be ready on the kidnapping.

The fourth week came by really quickly. If I was correct the kidnapping would not happen until a few days after, when the Kumo-nin came. So for the mean time, I trained just as hard as before.

On Hinata's birthday I had predicted they wouldn't come out of their compound so they could celebrate. That was fine by me, I was only worried about when the Kumo-nin arrived and Neji's mark. I knew logically that I would not be able to do anything about the mark now, but at least I would make sure that his father did not die.

After Hinata's birthday, I did not train. I didn't want to push my body more than it had been the past couple of weeks before. All that was left was the waiting.

The few days after Hinata's birthday I saw her walking the streets with her mother. I had congratulated her for her birthday. She had looked happy that I had meant it sincerely and we spent the day together. We played and helped her mother shop for groceries and she got a cake from the bakery as promised. As we walked, I noticed a familiar chakra signature following me. When Hinata had left with her mother, I told her that I hopped to see and talk to her again. She had shyly agreed and stuttered her goodbye.

Once they left the ninja with the familiar chakra but unrecognizable face appeared.

"Haruno Sakura, the Hokage wishes to see you." He said and I nodded politely and made my way towards the Hokage tower. When I stepped in, I noticed how serious the room inside felt. The ANBU stayed outside, and I could feel how his chakra swirled in wonder. I knew the ninja wondered what I did in here, but didn't seem to voice it. If they did, the Hokage must be keeping it a secret to tease them. Most of the time we just chatted when we finished planning.

"Good evening Hokage-sama." I greeted which he returned with his own.

"Sakura-chan, I have received a scroll from Kumogakure wanting to sign a piece treaty, just like you had envisioned. They will be here in a week, shall we still proceed with the plan?" He asked one last time. Ever since I had told him about things I knew of him and just now, I believe he trusted in my ability whole-heartedly.

"I think that is for the best. I have told you all that I have seen and I'm sure you think it will be better for not only the Hyuga clan but also the village." I stated. I wasn't afraid to speak my mind with Hiruzen, he knew that when I was serious, I hardly acted like a regular child. Of course he thought he knew why I did. He thought that this ability has made me seen many things for my age and has made me have an adult like view on things.

"Alright then. I will send someone to give you a message. I hidden message for the moment when they arrive. What shall it be Sakura-chan?" He asked and I thought for a moment.

"How about something simple and that will be believable like, our meeting has been cancelled. No one will suspect anything since we usually meet up anyway and you have a real reason to cancel." I said and watched as he had nodded.

I was soon dismissed and walked out the tower.

'A week. That's all we have.' I thought as I made my way to the Hyuga compound and suppressed my chakra the best I could.

**"What are we doing for a whole week?"** Inner asked.

'We are going to plan further. I don't want any mistakes. One of my faults is directions, so I'm going to run around the Hyuga compound and memorize the outside layout completely. I want you to help suppress our chakra to undetectable levels.' I instructed. Since we have been practicing intensely on our chakra control. We found out that as much as Inner is great at it, if we work together at suppressing our chakra, it will be undetectable. We shouldn't have any problems. Even though the Hyuga's have their Byakugan, as long as they can't sense us, they wont suspect and have to use them.

**~January~**

For five days I ran around all around the compound and through Konoha in possible pathways that the Kumo-nin might take. This was much like training. It helped our stamina as well as chakra control.

I hadn't met with anyone and I had hopped it wasn't suspicious, I just had many things to prepare. I did however spend time with them on the day before the appointed day. I had sent Ebizo a really good tea and medicinal herbs from Konoha for his birthday as well as a letter. Hopefully he would enjoy them.

On the seventh day of January I was completely ready, my nerves were steadied; but I knew that afterwards all the shock would hit me hard. I was very "weird" as Inner always said. I would get nervous sure, but they would leave if I concentrated and had support. The shock of the situation wouldn't hit me until after the situation passed. I was sure that this was a very similar situation.

I was walking the streets calmly like I would every other day, except I had Inner focused on the chakra's around us. On the outside I observed everything and everyone, making sure I didn't miss anything.

I walked around close to the Hyuga compound, waiting for the ninja to give me Hiruzen's message.

Around one o'clock in the morning, an ANBU, most definitely Kakashi had appeared beside me and gave me the message. I smiled and nodded and just to have _some_ fun today, I stared up at him like before. It was rather funny feeling his chakra swirl around uncomfortably.

When he left me, I started walking closer to the Hyuga compound. I walked the streets that I usually found them walking on. This time both Inner and I had our chakra ready for any sign.

At around six o'clock Inner and I felt a shift in chakra near by. The long wait and intense focus had been worth it when we felt it. Following it's direction, it lead to the compound. I quickly ran over to the side I had felt their chakra move towards. When I was near, I felt another signature, much smaller and very hectic and swirling frantically. They must have appeared near her already.

I stopped outside, and waited for them to jump the gate. Looking to my left, I saw the woods and then the sky that was close to sunset. I was glad that I had taken the time to memorize the path both in the light and dark.

As I crouched down near the bushes, I kept my chakra suppressed and pulled out some chakra from my ankle weights and transferred them to my hands. I kept it suppressed and ready to use when the opportunity emerged. I let Inner take over the chakra in our hands, confident that she would release it when it was time. I, on the other hand took over our regular chakra.

A few seconds more of sensing nervous and angry chakra, I watched as a completely covered ninja jumped the gate and ran through the woods. I immediately followed and was momentarily surprised at how light my feet felt. I hadn't even taken all the weight off and I already felt much faster. The Kumo-nin himself felt slow to me.

Once I was close I observed how they had covered Hinata's mouth from screaming and had tied her with rope. I sensed both their chakra as well as the ones far behind us. They had yet to find anything wrong, since the Kumo-nin was doing somewhat of a good job in suppressing his chakra.

I knew I had to be careful since I had never engaged anyone in combat, but I felt ready and trusted my plan. I sensed no one else nearby and found that as odd, since I was sure there must have been at least two of them.

When I sensed the chakra farther behind us finally swirl in a nervous manner, I deemed it about time to stop the ninja.

Once I was sure now that they had found something wrong and were splitting up to find Hinata, I ran faster.

After studying the human body intensely, I learned of the best places to attack with out killing. I didn't want to kill the man, and so I decided that as long as his hands were taken care of, the rest shouldn't be so bad.

I ran using the speed I was holding back and pulled back my fist. Once I was close, I saw how Hinata had noticed me, but ignored her in favor of focusing on my target. Inner released the chakra through our Tenketsu's on our fist, right as we made contact with his left shoulder. We decided to hit the one he was using to hold onto Hinata. After all securing her was our first priority.

I had predicted he would drop Hinata from the shock of being attacked from behind, but I was definitely not expecting to hear the bone crack under my fist. I had wanted to cringe but the moment was too serious to mess up because of a sickening sound.

The Kumo-nin groaned in pain as his hold on Hinata loosened completely. I had caught her before she had fallen roughly onto the ground and quickly set her down.

Because of the severity of the situation, I paid no attention to Hinata besides a quick glance to see if she was alright. When I found nothing wrong, I fisted my glove covered hands and ran forward towards the Kumo-nin. I made sure to push him away from Hinata.

He quickly took out kunai's from his holster and threw them at me. Travelling chakra down to the soles of my feet I quickly released it and pushed off the ground, jumping high in the air onto a branch from above.

I pushed more chakra out of my feet and catapulted myself towards the ninja. Pulling my fist back again, I waited until I was close and landed another punch on his right shoulder before he had time to go for another kunai. The sound of bone cracking was definitely not pleasant but it also brought a sense of relief as I knew that my target had been met. Our timing with the contact and release was in perfect sync between Inner and me.

I watched as he fell onto his back and groaned in agony form his broken shoulders and arms. Before I could think of a plan of action, Inner's frantic voice broke my train of thoughts.

**"Oh shit! Not only did he have one but two buddies as back up!"** Inner shouted in worry. I wasted no time and picked Hinata up carrying her as far away as I could. I sensed the two other ninja approach their injured teammate. As soon as I felt the rise of their chakra, I added some to my feet and climbed up a high tree.

I lowered Hinata onto the branch and saw as her eyes were wide with panic and tears. Her chakra was frantic and would only cause us to be found, so I had carefully pressed one of her pressure points and watched her faint. I checked her pulse and found it lowering to a calm beat. It was for the best that she stay unconscious and had her chakra go to normal small levels.

I closed my eyes and searched for all the signatures near by. Two were from the Kumo-nin and they would arrive in three minutes or so. There was three other signatures, two of which belonged to Hiashi and Hizashi. The other one I did not know but they were together so I didn't need to worry. They, however, had around four minutes until they arrived.

**"It's going to be hard to fight against two ninjas!"** Inner stated worriedly.

"I know, but we have to stall." I said and made sure our chakra was undetectable as I jumped away from Hinata's tree. Once I was about a minute away, I released some chakra and sensed the course of the Kumo-nin coming towards my direction, as well as the Hyuga's. Now I could only wait and plan quickly.

**"We're going to have to stall, I know; but what are we going to do?"** Inner asked and I looked around my surroundings.

"We're going to have to split them up." I said and quickly jumped off the tree and landed on the ground. I quickly ran over a few trees and took out some ninja wire, tying it between two trees and sticking explosive tags all over the wires. I then moved up ahead of the trap and waited as I grabbed for a kunai and stuck an explosive tag on it. I then took out another kunai with nothing on it.

I made sure to take off a bit more chakra from my ankle weights so I could be faster as well as have chakra ready for a good punch. Although I was far from the future Sakura's strength or Tsunade's strength, I had enough to defend myself. The only reason some ninja's could not use this technique was because of the precision and control of chakra. Luckily I had both and picked up on it quickly.

I looked behind me and saw that the trap was unnoticeable due to the darkness around us. It was already past sunset and probably around seven or eight.

I turned around as I felt the chakra signature come out from the trees.

"Is she the one?" Asked one of the ninja's that had a kunai in his left hand. The one beside him had a sword.

"He said the brat had pink hair, she's the one." Said the ninja holding the sword. He would have to be taken care of first, since he most definitely knew how to handle his sword well.

I took a deep breath and threw the kunai with no explosive tag towards the one with the sword. He obviously deflected it, but took the bait and charged towards me. I turned and tried to project worry in my facial expression. If they underestimated me then that was another one my advantages. I ran forward slowly as if I had no real speed. He seemed to believe my weak and tired facade. If he was smarter he would question how some child had injured someone bigger and got away quickly, and then suddenly became all tired and weak. But that only helped me out anyways so I didn't mind.

I looked behind me when I was a few feet away from the trap. I watched as he raised his sword, focusing solely on me as he ran forward. I ran around the trap quickly and watched as he looked confused by my speed and ran into the wire. I quickly encased the kunai with chakra and threw it at the tree right where the wire connected. The explosive began to burn and then followed down the wire and activated the other explosives which were tangled all over the Kumo-nin.

The explosion created a loud noise and smoke arose up to the night sky. Surely a lot of people would become alerted by the sound and chakra's.

As I was about to turn toward the other ninja, I barely managed to dodge a kunai aimed at my head. I didn't get so lucky when it made a painful cut across my neck. Thankfully, it cut nothing major and only cause some blood to flow down. It did sting but I block the pain out and focus on the ninja in front for now.

"You brat! You think we'll let you live now?!" He yelled and we both noticed his companion on the ground unconscious with burn marks.

**"Damn it! Where are the reinforcements?!"** Inner yelled and I narrowed my eyes at the ninja. I had to strike first or else I was in trouble. He had really good aim with his kunai and may not miss next time.

Taking a bit more chakra out of my ankle weights, I transferred them up to my fist discreetly. Once ready to be released, I ran forward and noticed my surroundings blur and I found it really hard to concentrate.

I appeared behind him and aimed a punch towards his left arm which I observed earlier. It was surely his dominant hand so attacking that first was important.

He sensed the spike in my released chakra and managed to escape the hit slightly injured. His left arm was only bruised and possibly fractured but he endured it and switched the kunai to his right hand a threw it towards me. I jumped back and felt it slice through my clothes and cut my arm. This had been my first time getting injured and as much as I wanted to worry about my injuries, that was not currently possible.

"Damn! How is a brat like you have that much strength?!" He yelled as he gripped his left arm. I did not answer his question. I always thought people were so foolish to answer such things in the middle of battle.

Forgetting about my injures, I ran forward and watched as he grabbed a kunai and throw it at me. I jumped up into the air dodging his kunai and flipped in the air over him. Landing behind him, I rushed forward and aimed for his leg.

This time my punch connected and a crack was heard on impact. He shouted out as he felt his balance tumble and fell to the ground with a loud thud. I watched as he clutched his leg in unsure methods. If he held on to tightly, it would hurt, if he didn't hold at all...well it would still hurt.

When I felt the three Hyuga chakra's appear in the clearing, I finally untensed my body and fell to my knees. I held myself up with my hands and had only now noticed my ragged panting. The shock and exhaustion finally catching up.

"Sakura-san! Are you okay?! What were you thinking?!" Hizashi asked worriedly as he made his way towards me. It took me a few deep breaths before I could speak again.

"I saw the ninja taking Hinata-san forcefully and so I couldn't just let them take her. There's another injured ninja a few minutes away from here." I informed and watched as Hiashi told the other Hyuga to retrieve them.

"Sakura-san, where is Hinata?" Hiashi asked as I stood back up with the help of Hizashi.

"I hid her up in a tree about a minute away. She should be unconscious." I said and watched pleasantly as he relaxed but then tensed up.

"Unconscious? Did they injure her?!" He asked with a hint of worry that I managed to pick up. I shook my head up to him and smiled.

"No. I had to get her to make sure they didn't find her so I knocked her out." I said with an apologetic smile. Hiashi sighed and nodded.

"I thank you Sakura-san." He said rather uncomfortably and I smiled brightly up to him. I was glad that he had somewhat opened up and showed his concern over his daughter.

"You should go retrieve her. I wouldn't want her to roll over and fall off the tree." I said and watched as he nodded and left quickly.

"Sakura-san, your injured." Hizashi stated and I remembered that I had been hit twice. I reached for the injuries and found out that they weren't _deep_ but deep enough for people to worry. My eyes widened in shock as I felt an angry and worried chakra coming towards us.

**"Aww crap! The Hokage's mad!"** Inner shouted and I couldn't help but worry. The plan had only been for me to follow the ninja and make sure to keep them in sight. Later he would track me with his crystal ball and find their location; but obviously I didn't follow the exact plan. Plus, I had even gotten injured, he would surely yell at us. I looked in shock as he appeared with four ANBU flanking him.

**"Surely their here for the Kumo-nin...right?"** Inner asked uncertainly. I could not answer and only hopped she was right.

"Sakura. I need you to come with me to the hospital." Hiruzen said, no, almost demanded. I noticed that he had dropped the -chan from my name as he always did when he was serious. I gulped and only hopped that he would keep this a secret from my parents...at least the fighting and injury part.

* * *

**Again, sorry guys for taking a long time in uploading this chapter. The next chapter wont be uploaded untill Wednesday and it will be leading into the Uchiha Massacre. I will start off as I continuation of this chapter. Hope you enjoyed and review please! More reviews equals longer chapters, like this one it was probably the longest one so far!**


	29. Chapter 29

Authors Note: Oh my god! Thank you for all the reviews! I really appreciate all the frequent reviewers who have kept reviewing my story and for all the new reviewers too!

A new reviewer actually pointed out something to me as I read their review. I guess I should explain why the story is titled Beautiful Harmony. Kazumi's name means Beautiful Harmony in Japanese and it also ties with how I want to end the story, do you guys get it? I want there to be beautiful harmony in the end.

I hope that helped and I can't seem to stop saying how much I'm grateful in all the support I'm receiving. Also, for some of the other questions, you guys will just have to read and find out, I like to keep readers in suspense!

This chapter isn't really a time skip, it's more of a regular chapter. I just had so much work that I couldn't get it all in and so the big time skip will begin in the next chapter. Hope you like it and continue to read and review! Sorry it's a bit shorter than the last few!

Talking "Yo!"

Thoughts 'Yo!'

Inner/Demons **"Yo!"**

**~Sakura's ability Information~**

_'Peoples thoughts'_

_"Communicating telepathically"_

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto just my OC's and plot.**

* * *

**Apprenticeship**

**Sakura's POV**

I gulped inaudible and just stared at the unreadable eyes of Hiruzen. I unintentionally moved closer to Hizashi feeling a bit safer with him at the moment.

"Uhm, will you be taking the Kumo-nin?" I asked quietly and then looked over to the one tied in ninja wires. My eyes widened when I saw two ANBU working on cutting him loose. I turned behind me when I felt the other Hyuga's chakra appear. He was empty handed and I saw two other ANBU holding onto the first ninja I injured.

**"Did he order all the ANBU to come?"** Inner asked incredulously. Turing back I saw two ninja that had flanked the Hokage come and pick up the one in front of me.

I winced when he groaned in pain, finally allowing a small grimace to pass my features. I'm sure if he wasn't in that much of pain, he would be cussing me out and trying to finish killing me off.

**"Well it seems like their taking care of that. But what the heck are the other two ANBU here for?!"** Inner screamed.

'I'm not sure. It could be for many reasons. Right now we need to worry more about Hiruzen.' I answered her, as I glanced over to the Hokage. He held the stare with his own for only a few seconds before turning and beginning to walk back from where he came from. Before I could say anything the two ANBU's from before flanked me now.

**"Oh my god! He won't let us escape!"** Inner frantically shouted as she gripped her head.

'Calm down, right now it would be best if you helped me think of a good excuse to use.' I thought as I walked behind the Hokage. The atmosphere was pretty intense, not even Hizashi spoke out when I left.

As I ran after him, I glanced up to try and read his expression. No luck there, all I got was an emotionless face looking straight ahead. The walk to the hospital was very nerve wrecking. We exchanged no words and I had been thinking how similar he was to my real mother.

**Normal POV**

'They really are very similar...' Sakura thought sadly as she kept her gaze down casted.

**"Who are similar?"** Inner asked intrigued at the sudden change in mood.

'The Hokage and my real mother. They both know how to make me feel guilty when I've done something wrong.' Sakura answered as she continued to walk silently.

'I always hated this feeling. Now I have to come up with an excuse that he will believe.' Sakura thought as she looked up to the bright lights ahead of her. The hospital was in sight and when they entered Sakura noticed how quiet it was.

They were quickly attended to due to the Hokage's presence. They stopped in front of a door and Sakura was led inside by a nurse. The Hokage and ANBU stayed behind to talk to the doctor.

After a few minutes of waiting, the doctor entered the room where Sakura was in. She handed her a piece of paper and pencil instructing her to write a letter to her parents. The doctor informed her that the Hokage stated it would be best if she told them she was staying with the Hyuga's.

'I guess that did make sense.' Sakura thought as she grabbed the utensils.

**"Do you think we're really sleeping over?"** Inner asked curiously.

'I'm not sure.' Sakura answered as she finished writing the letter. The doctor took the letter and placed it in her pocket so she could send it later.

The doctors hands were soon encased in a minty green color as she gently placed them over Sakura's arm. The stinging in her arm numbed down and after a few minutes the cut was healed.

"Haruno-san. Before I forget, you are to stay here and sleep. Once you wake up tomorrow morning you are to head to the Hokage tower." The doctor informed as she healed Sakura's neck. Sakura nodded up to the doctor.

"Why can't I go home now?" Sakura asked with a childlike wonder.

"We just want to make sure you are fully recovered." The doctor responded and stepped back when she was finished. She looked over Sakura one last time before offering a small smile and exiting out of the room.

Sakura sighed and jumped off the bed they made her sit on. She immediately took notice of how light her body still felt. It was still sore but at least it didn't hurt so much from the healing that was just done on her. Sakura closed her eyes and concentrated on her chakra.

**"What are you going to do?"** Asked Inner.

'I'm placing my regular chakra into my weights, since most of it was used up during the fight. Since they can't sense the chakra in my weights this is only a precaution before they start sensing that none of my regular chakra was used up.' Sakura said as she finished transferring the chakra. She groaned as she lifted her arms and legs. They felt extremely heavy and she knew it would take her awhile to get used to that feeling again.

Jumping back onto the bed she laid down and wanted nothing more than to take a long restful sleep.

'Hiruzen didn't even talk to us, besides telling us to go with him to the hospital.' Sakura said as she made herself as comfortable as she could on the bed.

**"Yeah, I'm scared for tomorrow."** Inner stated worriedly. Sakura sighed and nodded as she closed her eyes.

'Yeah, I'm worried about that too.' Sakura agreed before falling asleep.

**~Dream~**

A field full of delicately beautiful flowers swayed with the winds gentle movements. The dark blue sky completely covered the upper region of the world. Littered all across it were clusters of stars twinkling brightly.

An eerie aura surrounded the field. There was nothing suspicious of the howling of the wind and the rustling of the trees and flowers. All natural for the wilderness to have. A place untouched and destroyed by man.

Although most of the field was as it should, the center of the field however, was currently occupied.

Hair. Long, smooth hair, flowed unconstrained in the wind. The dark hair lashed out wildly when the wind picked up and flowed slowly when it died down. It covered the features of a woman in the center. The night sky shadowed her features and the full moon provided enough light to enhance the field in a soft glow. The woman's face was slimmed and mature having no child-like features. Countenance held tired, hurt-filled expressions but her eyes shone brightly with resolve. She leaned heavenly onto a tree that was rooted in the very center of the field. A wisteria tree that had bloomed beautiful purple flowers. They dangled down and shielded the woman from the night sky only leaving small gaps between the blossoms and branches.

Her battered body was covered by ripped and damaged clothing that also fluttered with the wind. It had no distinct design as it was cut up.

The woman made no movement of discomfort, standing with lacerations all over body and yet her eyes shone with determination.

The first movement was made across from the woman. A dark cloaked man stood menacingly. His clothes were also ripped and damaged as it fluttered in the wind behind him. A long silver spear held by his hand.

"Give it to me. You have no use for it when you're nearing your death." The man said and watched as the woman in front of him made no movement to comply with his request or to even look up at him.

"It does not belong to you...and it never will." The woman's velvety voice was whispered but silence around them made it easy to hear her words.

"This time, you cannot stop me." The man said as he calmly walked over towards the woman.

"You don't need to be alive for me to take it by force if need be." He spoke out as he stood in front of the woman.

"...You talk too much..." The woman's words rang out in the air and realization hit him quickly. The man raised his free hand and lifted the woman's face grabbing ahold of her chin. The woman's eye's were dulled but narrowed in a challenging manner, whatever the man had been looking for he didn't find it.

A piercing infuriated scream echoed through the field. The man raised his hand which held the spear and pierced the woman through the stomach. The disturbing sound of flesh being pierced and metal embedding into wood resounded all around in an echo. The previously undisturbed Wisteria blossoms fell around the two. The man who's face was down suddenly lifted, his hazel eyes shone brightly from the moons rays that sneaked past the petals and branches. He seethed in anger, with one last desperate cry of failure he tightly gripped the spear and pulled it out of the woman, eliciting a silent scream from the woman as her eyes shot open.

Frightened viridian eyes shot open accompanied by a loud scream. Sakura bolted up into a sitting position and held onto her stomach. Her loud breathing the only sound within the dark room. She desperately searched for the gaping hole in her stomach that she had vividly felt. When she felt nothing she reached up to her forehead where she wiped away beads of sweat.

** "Are you okay?!"** Inner had asked worriedly. Sakura's frightened expression slowly vanished being replaced by confusion.

"Did you see that? I...I felt it...when that woman was stabbed." Sakura voiced out in a breathless manner.

**"What are you talking about? What woman?"** Inner asked as she frowned at Sakura's distress.

"You didn't see it? How? I vividly saw it when I was sleeping!" Sakura stated, beginning to worry.

** "I didn't see anything...but I should be able to see your dreams, which are usually your memories anyway. Let me try to find it."** Inner said as she began to concentrate from within her domain.

**"Hmm, nope. I can't find anything about a strange woman getting stabbed."** Inner said. Sakura's worry returned and she began to think about what she had seen, but somehow everything went blank. She could not see the memory. All she had now was the knowledge of what happened and not the actual memory, like a vague idea.

**"Maybe you should get some rest. You probably just over exerted yourself."** Inner suggested and waited calmly as Sakura nodded and began to slowly and cautiously lay back down.

**~In The Morning~**

Groggy viridian eyes fluttered open when a noise was heard to the far right. A nurse was picking up a clip board and paper from off the floor and Sakura could only stare at the woman. Her eyes widened in realization when she remembered where exactly she was. Sitting up from the uncomfortable bed, Sakura yawned and stretched out until a popping sound was heard.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to wake you!" The young nurse stated as she bowed towards Sakura.

"It's alright. Ne, do you know what time it is?" Asked Sakura as she moved the covers off and moved her legs to dangle on the edge of the bed.

"Um, it's ten o'clock." The nurse answered as she looked up from her watch. Sakura blinked at the nurse once and then twice until her words finally sunk in.

"Ten?!" Sakura asked in disbelief as she jumped off the bed and looked around in worry.

"Y-Yes, it's t-ten. Do you need to be somewhere?" The nurse asked worriedly. Sakura nodded her head up to the nurse quickly.

"I have to see the Hokage. Do you think I could go see him now?" Sakura asked and watched as the nurse smiled apologetically down to her.

"I'm sorry but doctor Reiko-san needs to be the one to allow you to leave. I'll go get her for you, just wait here okay?" The nurse asked and watched as Sakura gratefully smiled.

'I can't believe I slept in? It wasn't even a comfortable bed.' Sakura grumpily thought as she rubbed her sore back.

**"We must have been more exhausted then we thought."** Inner stated as she stretched her limbs out too. The door opened and the doctor that had healed her before stepped in.

"Hello Haruno-san. How are you feeling?" Asked doctor Reiko.

"I'm feeling fine." Sakura answered and watched as Reiko began to give her one final check up. Sakura took the opportunity to observe the woman. She was probably in her twenties from what Sakura could tell. She was tall and had straight black shoulder length hair. Her eyes were hazel colored and she wore a black knee length skirt with a blue shirt. She had a white doctor's coat on top of her normal outfit. She didn't look like anyone from the anime/manga, but then there was a lot of people she has met that weren't.

"Everything looks good. You can go see the Hokage now Haruno-san." Reiko informed as she wrote down on her clip board.

"Thank you Reiko-san, and you can call me Sakura." Sakura said and watched as Reiko nodded and smiled down to her.

They made their way outside of the room and towards the lobby. Sakura was glad that she was able to get out of the hospital but deep inside she wasn't feeling very good about the meeting. Right when she was allowing herself to relax, she tensed back up when she noticed the ANBU standing near the door.

**"Oh no...Do you think their waiting for us?!"** Inner asked.

'It's highly possible.' Sakura answered nervously as she made her way towards them. She sensed two familiar chakra's while the other two she did not know.

'Why did he send four? It's not like we weren't going to see him. Did he think we wouldn't?' Sakura wondered as they stopped in front of the ninja.

"Here you go, one healthy child. Good as new!" Reiko stated with a grin. Sakura couldn't help but think this woman was either very humorous all the time or just wanted to lighten up the suddenly awkward mood.

"Haruno Sakura, we are to escort you to the Hokage's tower." One of the unfamiliar ninja spoke up.

"Okay. Thank you again Reiko-san." Sakura bowed slightly and waved goodbye as the group of five started walking out the doors.

**Sakura's POV**

As we walked down the streets I couldn't help feel awkward. Since we exited out of the hospital, we have been receiving a lot of attention. The people's gazes would glance at the ANBU and then quickly shift over to me. My guess was that they didn't want to keep their gaze lingering for to long on the mysterious ANBU.

**"What are we supposed to do?! Do you think Hiruzen will yell at us? He's already had a long time to cool down!"** Inner stated worriedly.

'Well we didn't really follow his orders, even though that was the plan since the beginning. I'll just have to quickly think of something like last time. You just take care of our chakra.' I said as I looked down at my hands. The weight was uncomfortable and I really missed the weightless feeling. I sighed quietly and took the time to observe the ANBU. They flanked me on both sides and behind. Kakashi was to my right and the one that had the familiar chakra was behind him. the other two were to my left.

** "Do you think the Hyuga's are okay?"** Inner suddenly spoke up.

'I hope so or we're going to be yelled at for nothing, then again it wasn't just for nothing. The fight had made me realize a few things and I don't regret doing it either. I am however worried about how many people know.' I answered as I looked up to the sky.

** "I think Hiruzen will keep it relatively secret. I'm sure it'll only be the Hyuga's, him, us, and the ANBU."** Inner stated. I frowned worriedly.

'That's what worries me. I'm fine with the Hyuga's and Hokage knowing but not the ANBU.' I thought.

** "But their like the Hokage's most trusted!"** Inner shouted. I shook my head slightly.

'That's not entirely correct. And you're forgetting the fact that Danzo has spies everywhere. Not even for a second can we forget about that man. He was a major problem in the anime/manga.' I said and observed all the villages.

** "Augh! There's just so much crap piling up!"** Inner shouted.

'You think its bad now? Wait until we get further into the timeline. Trust me, it gets worse.' I informed.

** "Don't remind me. From the glimpses that I saw from your memories, my life sucks..."** Inner grumbled. I smiled at her dejected state.

'You had good times, and besides we're in this together. We can change things if we try hard enough.' I encouraged and felt her straighten up.

'But now that you've mentioned it, the next major event is also approaching.' I stated as I narrowed my eyes at some villagers I remembered picking on Naruto.

**"...That's right...the massacre. Do you have a plan?"** Inner asked hopefully.

'Inner, I've had two years to think of a lot of things; but some things just need to be thought out more thoroughly then others.' I stated.

**"I guess your right...but have you at least come up with a way to help the Uchiha's live?"** Inner asked. I didn't respond because I had yet to come up with a full proof plan.

'A lot of my plans will have to be changed to incorporate Hiruzen's ideas. So first we have to confront him and see what he wants to say.' I stated and sighed.

"Sakura-chan?" I stopped and turned over towards the voice who called me.

'Speak of the devil...' I thought as I looked at a confused Shisui and a quiet Itachi. He too looked confused down at me

**"A very cute one!"** Inner squealed as she stared googly-eyed at Itachi.

'Inner, please shut up.' I deadpanned.

"Good morning." I said to both of them. I noticed how they frequently looked at the ANBU and then back at me...well Shisui did, Itachi just had to look once at them.

"Uhm, so what are you doing..." Shisui didn't finish and left his question hanging. They must be wondering about the ANBU around me. I looked up to Kakashi and sensed his chakra shift the very tiniest bit. I inwardly sighed. They looked like they weren't going to talk.

"I was playing hide and seek with the Hokage. He couldn't find me so he asked for help." I informed.

** "Really? Is that the best you could come up with?!"** Inner asked in disbelief.

'I don't hear you coming up with anything.' I commented. I felt her pout and knew she wouldn't interrupt. I found it very amusing to feel all their chakra swirl in disbelief.

"Is that so?...well I hope you have fun...We'll see you around." Shisui stated uncertainly. I smiled and nodded as I watched them leave with a bit of doubt in my words.

The rest of the walk was quiet and nerve wrecking. The moment we stepped into the building I felt not just the Hokage chakra inside but another person as well. When Kakashi opened the door, I had almost wished he hadn't.

'I don't feel so confident anymore...' I worriedly stated as I looked passed Kakashi's legs. I hadn't even noticed how frozen in place I was until an ANBU had lead me inside by placing a hand on my shoulder.

I could feel Inner working on calming down my nerves and keeping our chakra in place.

"Hokage-sama." I spoke first and bowed down slowly. I was extremely nervous with the other occupants in the room.

Morino Ibiki or better known as the commanding officer of the Konoha torture and interrogation force. Feared as the head of the T&I. He was the one who dealt with torturing foreign ninja or other similar situations.

'What could he possibly be doing here...No, wait! There are multiple reasons as to why he could be here...' I thought out nervously.

"Sakura, I'm sure you have a general idea as to why you are here, correct?" He asked seriously. I gulped inaudibly and nodded my head up to him. I was extremely nervous in this position. Hiruzen was speaking seriously and his four ANBU flanked him only adding to his intimidating look. Not to mention the man who was standing towards my right. He was watching me intently. His mere presence alone was intimidating.

"I assume it had to do with yesterday..." I said and watched as he nodded.

"That is correct. You didn't follow the plan and placed yourself in a very dangerous situation. If I had not felt your rise in chakra then I would not have been able to find you." He said and my eyes widened. Has Inner's and my control gotten that good? Certainly he was leaving things out.

"Sakura, when we had spoken about your abilities before. You assured me that your combat skills were your weakest. And yet you took out ninja with more experience than you. Why did you lie?" He asked and I couldn't help but sense the very small hurt radiating off of him.

"I didn't really lie. It had more to do with my own opinion about my skills. I have been practicing a lot more lately, so that could be a reason as to the difference from before. I honestly wasn't sure if I was able to take down the ninja." I said, only half telling the truth. If I was being honest, I did believe I would win against the ninja; but only because of my chakra and intelligence. My combat skill did worry me, and I'm sure if I had not had those small advantages of surprise then things would have ended badly.

"Then if you were uncertain, why did you engage the enemy?" He asked and I couldn't help the glance I took over to the ninja's in the room.

"Well...I...Uhm...saw some mistakes in our plan...and didn't want that...ending." I answered very vaguely and I was sure the others didn't quite understand.

"Before we continue Sakura. I have something I've been meaning to say. Your actions have caused you to be put in a spot that I do not wish you to be in." He stated and I couldn't help tilt my head in confusion.

'What has happened because of my actions?' I thought nervously.

"I cannot continue to hide your abilities from everyone Sakura. You will have to make some serious decisions." Hiruzen stated as he laced his finger together and leaned his chin on them.

"I know I promised to keep it between us unless you wanted to tell someone; and I am giving you this moment to think about it. The people in this room are the ones I have currently decided would be best to know." He said, I wanted to shake my head up to him in disbelief. He wasn't giving me a choice. He had practically already told them I had a big secret and they wouldn't just forget it either.

**"What's the big deal?! I think you should tell them about our ability, its not that bad!"** Inner insisted.

'No, I can't just tell anyone. I have to know who the people behind those masks are. If it's someone who works with Danzo then it would place me in a bad position. He would probably want me to work for him just like Itachi.' I informed and continued to look at the Hokage.

"May I have time to think about it?" I asked hoping for at least an hour. It was very quiet until Hiruzen spoke up.

"You have until sun down Sakura; but I advice you to think quickly. What happen yesterday has already reached certain ears and although information was kept to a minimum, they will still be planning for your advanced placement. Which brings me to my final option. If you really do not wish to enter the academy early then you will have to come up with something. It won't be long before they make their move and admit you into the academy." Hiruzen advices and I nodded slowly.

**Normal POV**

"...Then, I will be back before sun down..." Sakura spoke out nervously. She bowed and then walked out of the office.

"Hokage-sama, don't you think it would have made things easier if she would just answer right now?" Ibiki asked, since the moment Hiruzen had told him of the situation, he was skeptical. His suspicion only escalated when a small pink haired child walked inside the room.

"No. Sakura, isn't like the other kids you've dealt with. Any of you." Hiruzen spoke out to the room full of ninja.

"I noticed that the first time I met her. She acts like a child only at certain times." Stated the masked ANBU.

"Is your promise to her so important that you can't tell us?" The ANBU asked. Hiruzen sighed and leaned back until his back touched his chair.

"I hate making people feel they don't have a choice in situations like these. if I can prevent a young aspiring ninja to think that way by keeping her secret until sundown then all is well. And I'm sure that in the end she will agree to tell you all her secret. Sakura is a very precocious child, she will know what to do." Hiruzen said and swirled in his chair to face the Hokage mountain and watch as a small pink haired girl climbed the stairs.

**Sakura's POV**

I felt exhausted as I climbed the stairs, all the weight and soreness all over my body were tiring.

**"So...What are your ideas?"** Inner asked as I climbed on top of the first's head. I liked sitting up here and as weird as it sounded I found that I thought best on top of the first Hokage's head. I liked all the heads carved into the mountain but this one was oddly enough my favorite.

Once I was at the top, I sat cross legged and looked over to the village.

'It's hard to say...I don't know if its a plan or a spur of the moment decision. I'm planning on telling them about our ability, I just don't want to tell the wrong person. So, if they think I'm going to trust them with a big secret like this, then they have to trust me with their identity.' I thought out.

** "I don't know if you should push your luck like that. I thought they weren't supposed to reveal their identity?"** Inner asked. I nodded and took in a deep breath.

'To normal people, but if you think about it, it wont matter when they know of our ability. They'll think I can see past memories as well as future ones. Not to mention communicating telepathically. So why not find out sooner who they are. That way if I don't know them, then I'll tell the Hokage that I do not trust them because of future visions.' I stated and sighed deeply.

**"Well, I guess if you feel like it'll work."** Inner shrugged her shoulders. Before we could think about our situation any more, a sudden chakra signal appeared behind us in a split second. I tensed up and slowly looked behind me.

My eyes widened as I saw the man we were talking about moments ago, standing behind me with a calm demeanor.

'Should we act childish and naïve or smart?' I asked as I continued to look at the old man hoping he did not see how nervous I felt.

**"Act like a kid, we should play it safe."** Inner suggested. I agreed with her suggestion and stood up.

"Good afternoon." I said as childishly as any four year old. He looked at me with suspicion and narrowed his eye at me.

"Are you the one who they're all talking about?" He asked rather coldly. I tilted my head in a confused manner. I even blinked my eyes up to him owlishly.

"Uhm...I don't know..." I said and watched as he looked at me in disbelief.

"Hmm, you are only a civilian child with somewhat slightly higher chakra, there seems to be nothing particularly outstanding." He said, seemingly not caring that I had heard everything he had just said.

I kept quiet, not really wanting to talk to him. I awkwardly stood on top of the first's head in silence. When I had thought he had finally made up his mind to leave he stood closer to me.

"There are many areas that need improvement, but at your age they're quiet easy to fix." He stated and I had a very hard time not showing my surprise. Acting like a kid who knows nothing is hard.

'Was he saying that he would train us to be like those Root members?!' I thought in alarm.

**"NO! We are not getting brainwashed by this evil man!"** Inner shouted crossing her arms to form an x.

'It's not like I want to either! This is what Hiruzen meant by the information reaching certain ears. But what kind of plan does he expect me to come up with?!' I thought as I watched Danzo impatiently look at me.

"Uhm, what do you mean?" I asked him.

"You will be placed in a specific advanced training program." He answered very monotonously. My eyes widened and I began to panic a little inside.

'This isn't good! He already expects us to be one of his ruthless ninja. There's no way I'm going to accept that!' I thought and began to formulate ways to get out of this situation.

"But I can't..." I said when I saw him begin to turn away. He stopped and looked at me with a narrowed eye.

"This isn't something you can decline." He stated and I could feel the beats of sweats forming on my forehead.

'What to do? What to do?' I chanted in my mind. As I thought of anything that could help.

'The only one who could possibly stand up to Danzo and keep me away from him would be Hiruzen...' I thought of the Hokage and knew he wouldn't mind helping me, but what kind of help would be best? As I thought about him, I got an image. It was of Tsunade.

'That's it! Although this plan will change a lot in the future, I don't see why it shouldn't be okay since we're trying to change it anyway. And at this point anything is better then being under the observation of Danzo.' I thought as an idea formed in my head.

"I can't train under you because I'm already training under someone..." I said trying to appear calm.

"Who is it?" Danzo asked.

"Uhm, I don't know if I can say who..." I said and watched as he scowled.

"It must be Hiruzen." He whispered to himself.

'I was thinking more of Tsunade but I suppose Hiruzen works too.' I thought and watched as he turned without saying a word and walked away.

'How rude.' I thought and sat back down. I sighed and only when I was really alone did I relax.

**"That man is scary."** Inner said and shivered.

'Try more like annoying. I can tell this isn't the last time he tries to recruit us. Actually his thought about it being Hiruzen gave me an idea.' I said and laid down.

** "Are you seriously thinking of studying under Hiruzen?!"** Inner shouted.

'Yeah, I guess. You said you wanted to change the plot so why not stray from the actual one now? I mean we've already changed some of it.' I reasoned and sat back up.

**"This isn't just because of what I said. You have your own reasons for doing all of this Kazumi."** Inner stated. I nodded and climbed down the first Hokage's head.

'That's right, but I'm Sakura right now. This come's first besides, I'm not 100% sure where to start looking for my problems. But here we have our answer, so let's go and see if it works.'

**~A few min later~**

Approaching the office door this time didn't feel any better, especially since I was stepping in alone. Inside, I saw the others from before were already here.

"Have you decided?" Hiruzen asked and stopped writing on whatever was on his desk. I nodded up to him and glanced at the other occupants.

"Concerning the first part, I've decided to tell them...but on one condition..." I said and held my breath as I saw him raise an eyebrow.

"And what might that be?" He asked after awhile. I let go of the breath I was holding in.

"Since you know what it is. You know how dangerous it is if the wrong person found out. My only condition is to see the faces behind your ninja's mask." I stated calmly. That was really all I needed, after that everything was fine. I saw how the ANBU turned in shock towards the Hokage and I sensed how their chakra swirled uncertainly. I guess they needed some incentive.

"You don't have to worry. I already have a lot of information that people would want. I'm sure I can keep your identity a secret." I stated and watched Ibiki who was leaning on the window walk over to Hiruzen.

"You are aware that this is top secret information that could get you in troubled." Ibiki said and I stared up to him dead on.

"So is all the other information in my head." I said and watched as he raised an eyebrow.

"I believe that even if you didn't come right out and showed me, sooner or later I would find out. For example, the one with the dog mask is Kakashi-san." I stated and watched in amusement as his chakra spiked a bit.

"Sakura is right. You might as well show her." Hiruzen stated and I watched as they hesitantly took off their mask. The first person I looked at was the one who had the familiar chakra. I wanted to laugh, of course it had to be Genma. Shaking my head slightly, I looked to the next one.

It was Hayate Gekko, the proctor who died and had always coughed. It seemed like he had yet to experience whatever caused him to cough all the time.

The next one was someone who caused my nerves to sky rocket. I didn't know who he was and certainly wasn't letting him know more then he already did. Before they had a chance to speak. I quickly glanced at Hiruzen before taking off my right glove off. I walked over to them with a greeting smile. I outstretched my arm and waited until they took it.

'Inner, you know what to do.' I reminded her before I made contact.

Genma curiously grabbed my hand and shook it. His thoughts were filled with questions and I received an image from him. It was that of a woman. She had long curly light brown hair. Her eyes were the same shade as his brown ones, and the beautiful women was undoubtedly his mother. The image faded and I smiled up to him, noticing the uncanny resemblance.

I moved over to Hayate and he smiled as he shook my hand. He was thinking of many questions that were similar to Gemma's. Though the image I got from him was that of someone young. A girl that had short blonde hair and green eyes. I wonder if this was a distant memory of a friend? It couldn't possibly be his daughter, he wasn't married for all I knew.

I stepped towards the last person. He was no one that I remember from the anime/manga. He had black short hair and dark forest green eyes. He was pretty young, just like the others. I wonder if he really works for Danzo.

He was surprisingly thinking of nothing. If he was a Root member then that was explainable. His memory that transferred over to me was not pleasant and it only proved my suspicions.

The memory was of him and Danzo along with some other ANBU members. They spoke and then stood up from their kneeling position. The memory faded when we let our hands go. I narrowed my eyes at him slightly before walking back to the middle.

"Hokage-Sama...can I speak to you in private? I think you need to know something before I say anything." I said and watched as his eyes shone with understanding. He ordered the ANBU and Ibiki to leave.

"Did you see something?" He asked and I nodded.

"Before I came here I met a man. He didn't introduce himself, but I knew who it was. It was Shimura Danzo, and he wanted to place me in an advance training program.' I informed and watched as he sighed tiredly.

"I am assuming you declined." He stated and I nodded.

"It would be best that way. His methods are rather ruthless, even for ANBU." Hiruzen said and I couldn't help agree.

"I know. I've seen some thing's that man has done and will do. Hokage-Sama I don't trust him...at all." I said and watched him raise an eyebrow.

"I know he can be strict Sakura, but he's not that bad." He informed.

** "Not that bad! Yeah right!"** Inner shouted.

'Calm down. He still believes his friend wouldn't do bad things in Konoha. Even though, I guess he's more guarded what with Orochimaru betraying him.' I thought about it and couldn't help feel bad. So many bad things happened to people here.

"I had visions of him. He isn't really nice..." I said having a memory of my own appear. It was about last night. I wonder what that meant and why it was now coming back.

"You don't have to be holding a persons hand anymore?" He asked curiously.

"I do but sometimes I do get visions without contact." I said. This was actually good. Now I didn't necessarily have to have direct contact with someone. At least not with the things already knew.

"That's amazing. Your almost like a fortune teller." He said while chuckling at my confusion. I guess he could put it like that, but my method for receiving information is different.

"I guess so, but about Danzo...uhm I told him I couldn't train under him because I was already training under someone. He seemed to have insinuated that I was studying under you. Before I could correct him, he just turned and left." I informed and saw his eyebrow rise.

"Studying under me?...That actually sounds like a good idea. With your abilities you can tell me if you get any visions and I can help you with that ability as well as others if you would like." My eyes widened in disbelief.

"You mean I can be your apprentice?! Don't I have to be older and beside your really busy." I stated. I hadn't thought he would readily agree but this might be good.

"I can make the time. Sakura-chan you act as if you don't want to." He said and I shook my head vigorously.

"No no no, I just can't believe you would want too. It's just a big shock for me." I said and watched as he smiled kindly at me.

"I wouldn't mind taking you as my apprentice." He said sincerely. I smiled up to him and nodded. Even if this decision did change something, I still have enough knowledge incase drastic measures need to be done.

"Hokage-sama, we've taken care of one problem, but one other thing needs to be thought through. All the people who where in here are trustworthy, except for that last ninja. I can't trust him enough to allow him to know." I stated. I watched as he pondered on my words.

"Did you see something when you held his hand?" Hiruzen asked. I nodded towards him.

"He is secretly working for someone, I couldn't exactly see who it was...but they kneeled in front of them." I said. Telling him it was Danzo could wait for a little while.

"If you really feel this way Sakura-chan, I will ask him to leave." He said and I nodded gratefully. I watched as he stood and walked around his desk towards me. He reached his hand and patted my head.

"Sakura." He started.

** "Oh no he went back to serious mode!"** Inner stated.

"I want you to promise me you will not do something reckless like last night again. The reason for our planning was to follow it as safely as possible." He said and I looked down to the floor feeling guilty again.

'He was only mad because he was trying to make me see the recklessness of my actions.' I thought and looked back up to him.

"I promise...to tell you before hand whenever I get a new vision and it needs to be changed." I said tweaking it a little. I knew with the future events ahead, it was going to be hard not to do things on my own.

"Good. Now let's let the others in." He said and walked past me and towards the door. He stepped out and I waited until he told that one guys to leave.

'I'm sure that guy will report this to Danzo and he'll get even more annoying.' I thought as I stretched out. My bones popped and I sighed. I was going to have to take it easy. All this stress and exhaustion on my body cannot be good. I turned my head and looked as the Hokage, Ibiki, and the ANBU with their masks on stepped in. The ANBU took off their mask when they were all safely inside.

"So is there any other things you have to consult each other first?" Asked Ibiki. He looked about ready to get things over with. Not to mention he looked like he was ready to look through my mind. I shivered at the thought of him finding out my big secret, but felt better quickly when I remembered Inner was able to block them out.

"No. Everything has been taking care of. Sakura-chan, do you want me to be the one who says it?" He asked. I was going to say it didn't matter but then decided against it. I shook my head and watched him nod.

"What you are about to be told will stay only among us six. Sakura-chan will tell us if she tells someone else; but only she is allowed to, understand?" He asked and the four other members in the room chorused a "Hai."

"Sakura-chan, whenever your ready." Hiruzen stated. I nodded and decided I should just get Ibiki's trust first, since it would be the hardest. I outstretched my hand towards him and watched as he raised an eyebrow but still reached for my hand.

Holding his hand felt weird. His big hand completely engulfed my smaller hand. Trusting that Inner had fortified my mind, I began to talk.

"It's impressive how you're not thinking of anything in particular at this moment." I stated and watched in amusement as his eyes widened slightly.

"So you can communicate telepathically?..." He stated in his mind. I knew it must have felt weird to him since it was his first time. I was barely getting used to it myself and that was only after using this ability with Hiruzen.

"Not just that." I said and for the next five minutes I explained roughly what I could do. I had noticed the others in the room look on with confusion.

The same thing happened for the other three. They each had their uncertainty but they all believed me when I started telling them about their memories. Of course I kept things to the most polite way of snooping around their mind, telling them only about the images I had seen. Most times however, I couldn't really choose what I saw or heard.

"I can see why this was so secretive." Kakashi spoke up as he looked down at me.

"Yes, anyone would want to see future visions to gain an advantage." Ibiki said. That made me raise an eyebrow.

'Was that his interrogation instincts I felt.' I thought as I looked back to the Hokage, with a shiver.

"That is why we cannot allow anyone else to know." Hiruzen stated.

"Excuse me Hokage-sama but is that why Daichi had to leave?" Asked Genma. Hiruzen nodded and looked over to me, causing the others to look my way.

"That's right. That's also why I had asked you to show me your face's." I answered and watched as they nodded and turned back to Hiruzen.

"You are all dismissed. I want you to act normal around each other. You four, if you notice that anyone is on to Sakura's secret then you must inform me. Understood?" He asked and waited for their synchronized agreement.

They all placed their masks on and I knew they were getting ready to poof back to their previous positions. I waved and watched as they nodded and performed the necessary signs for the body flicker technique.

"Now that I think about it...Did you tell them about my apprenticeship under you?" I asked and watched him realize the same thing.

"Oh well, they'll find out eventually. Ibiki, if you see them make sure to pass it down. I'm sure this information won't take long to get to everyone's attention." Hiruzen said.

"It certainly is surprising. You haven't taken a student on since..." He broke off his sentence and seemed to have caught his mistake. Being the observant person that I was, I caught a glimpse of sadness in Hiruzen's eyes.

'Let's make sure his future is better. I don't think Orochimaru is savable but I know with planning maybe Hiruzen's death can be.' I thought as I looked on to my new teacher. It was shocking to know that I was to be not only future Tsunade's apprentice as well as Kakashi's student and now the Hokage's.

I knew things would undoubtedly change the timeline but it's what our main goal is. To change things for the better. Nothing was going to be completely the same.

"Sakura-chan, our lessons will begin next week. I have to prepare a schedule and get things ready." He said and I nodded. I was actually very excited to learn under the revered "Professor." I knew it would be very helpful.

"Alright, I shall come see you next week." I said with a smile.

"Good. Ibiki, will you lead Sakura-chan out?" He asked and waited for Ibiki to nod.

I waved goodbye and followed Ibiki out.

I'm 99% sure that the reason we were being watched was because of the oddness of our differences. He was huge compared to me. Tall, muscular and had a face that screamed authority. I, on the other hand was puny and looked like the wind could knock me over, and not to mention my ridiculously bright appearance.

"Ne Ibiki-san, do you think I'll be able to not cause suspicion in people?" I asked and watched in amusement as he looked all the way down to me.

"You've been able to get by so far, I'm sure no one will suspect you as long as you keep up the child-like act." He answered and I couldn't help my eyes from widening.

'So he saw through my act...that's not good. We're going to have to get more acting lessons from Ino.' I thought tiredly. Ino was a good teacher...she just got a little too excited.

* * *

**Sorry again for all these wierd updates. I have had so much work to do; and I still have four projects due, it really sucks. I'm not exactly sure when the next update will be because it will be a long time skip. I will be posting it next week for sure but if something happens to postpone it, you can read why on my profile. Thank you for being so patient and reviewing!**


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